Can a plaintiff bring a claim based on an alleged design defect?

Depending on the facts of a given case, a claim based on an alleged design defect can be proven by a plaintiff under the consumer expectation test, where the plaintiff proves that "the product failed to perform as safely as an ordinary consumer would expect when used in an intended or reasonably foreseeable manner"; additionally, such a claim can be defeated by a defendant under the risk-benefit test (where, after the plaintiff establishes that a product's design caused damages, the defendant proves that "on balance, the benefits of the challenged design outweigh the risk of danger inherent in such design"). (Barker v. Lull Engineering Co. (1978) 20 Cal.3d 413, 432 (Barker); see id. at p. 435.) In granting summary judgment, the trial court ruled, in part, as follows: (1) Plaintiffs did not establish a triable issue of material fact as to causation; (2) the consumer expectation test did not apply as a matter of law; and (3) for purposes of applying the risk-benefit test, even if Plaintiffs had shown a triable issue of material fact as to causation, Defendants established the requisite elements for the application of the risk-benefit test, and Plaintiffs did not establish a triable issue of material fact as to whether the benefits of the design outweighed the risks of the design.