A federal judge precluded a witness who had worked for a glass manufacturer, but lacked expertise in glass bottle design, from testifying at trial in a products liability suit filed by a bartender whose finger was injured by an exploding beer bottle.

Eastern District Judge Denis Hurley (See Profile) granted MillerCoors' motion for summary judgment in Toomey v. MillerCoors, 12-CV-3295, saying that George Pecoraro, the expert witness, had only theorized that William Toomey's accident occurred because Coors Light bottles are too thin to withstand fracture.

“In fact, when asked where his methodology came from, Mr. Pecoraro responded, 'my head,'” the judge wrote in his Feb. 17 order.