After drinking from a plastic-wrapped glass bottle, Michael Mattern supposedly swallowed a few pieces of glass and later sued the manufacturers.
When the Nassau County Supreme Court granted a party's request to perform a test on the container, an appealed followed.
Since the bottle would be damaged by the analysis, the Appellate Division, Second Department, thought the destruction had to be sufficiently justified--particularly since it hadn't been shown that less destructive methods weren't available.
Luckily, Michael didn't have a glass jaw.
To view a copy of the Appellate Division's decision, please use this link: Mattern v. Hornell Brewing Co., Inc.