Judge Upholds Class Cert. in Tristar Pressure Cooker Class Action Lawsuit

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On Tuesday, an Ohio federal judge denied a motion by Tristar Products Inc. to decertify a Class of consumers who say they purchased Tristar pressure cookers that had a dangerous design defect.

U.S. District Judge James S. Gwin was not persuaded by Tristar’s argument that the pressure cookers’ changing price and the unknown number of potential Class Members make Class certification improper.

However, the judge has determined that, because individual Class Members’ damages differ and there are an unknown number of eligible Class Members, the trial scheduled to begin on July 10, 2017 will be bifurcated.

“First, we will try Tristar’s liability as a class action,” Judge Gwin says in his order rejecting Tristar’s motion seeking decertification of the pressure cooker class action lawsuit. “Afterwards, if necessary, the parties will address damages.”

Judge Gwin noted that it is possible for plaintiffs to determine how many Tristar pressure cookers were sold by collecting Tristar’s online sales data and by collecting information from retailers who sold Tristar pressure cookers. Tristar pressure cookers are reportedly currently being sold at Kohl’s for between $110 and $160.

The Tristar class action lawsuit alleges certain Tristar pressure cookers contain a design defect that allows consumers to open the pressure cooker when it contains a dangerous amount of pressure, potentially leading to a pressure cooker explosion that can cause serious injuries.

The three named plaintiffs, who reside in Colorado, Ohio and Pennsylvania, say that they were injured by scalding food that exploded out of a Tristar pressure cooker. They claim that they followed the directions and that the pressure cookers appeared to be safe to open, but they still contained a dangerous amount of pressure that caused scalding hot food to be ejected from the appliance.

The plaintiffs say this alleged Tristar exploding pressure cooker defect makes the pressure cookers worthless. They are seeking a full refund. Tristar denies that the pressure cookers are worthless, even if it is determined that they have a design defect.

On April 24, 2017, the judge granted Class certification to Colorado, Ohio and Pennsylvania consumers who purchased the allegedly defective Tristar pressure cooker.

According to Judge Gwin, the jury at the July 10 trial will be asked to determine whether the Tristar pressure cookers have a defect and, if they do, whether the defect renders the pressure cookers worthless.

If the jury determines that the Tristar pressure cookers are defective and worthless, the parties can determine the issue of damages, which Judge Gwin says could be handled by the creation of subclasses, in settlement negotiations or by individual hearings.

The plaintiffs are represented by Gregory F. Coleman, Adam E. Edwards and Mark E. Silvey of Greg Coleman Law PC, Shanon J. Carson and Arthur Stock of Berger & Montague PC, Drew Lagando of Landskroner Grieco Merriman LLC, and Edward A. Wallace and Tyler J. Story of Wexler Wallace LLP.

The Tristar Pressure Cooker Class Action Lawsuit is Chapman, et al. v. Tristar Products Inc., Case No. 1:16-cv-01114, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio.

UPDATE: February 2018, the Tristar Power Pressure Cooker class action settlement is now open. Click here to file a claim.

UPDATE 2: On Feb. 4, 2019, the Tristar pressure cooker class action settlement faced pushback from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) that says Class Members get nothing of value from the deal.