This study evaluates the legal term "sophisticated user." With increasing frequency, Defendants are relying on this defense to mitigate a failure-to-warn finding. It is the jury's duty to determine which users are sophisticated, based on jury instructions given by the judge. This study evaluates the sophisticated user defense in terms of a recent Federal case finding, in which a jury found a failure to warn, along with finding that the user was sophisticated. The jury instructions in this case include several elements, any one of which may lead a jury to determine that a Plaintiff is sophisticated without any corroborating evidence; this study examines each element separately. Human factors professionals may be asked to evaluate products regarding the effectiveness of the instructions and warnings in communicating hazard information. The first author was retained as such an expert in a case regarding a scissor lift manufactured by JLG industries 1. 1 This case has been litigated in Federal court and thus is public record. Therefore, names and facts cited in this paper are actual. Figure 1. Operator holding control box Figure 2. Ramps and flatbed truck
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