Product Liability
Product liability is law that holds product makers responsible for the injuries caused by those products. This area of law applies to manufacturers, distributors, suppliers and retailers, among others. In the
The most common claims involve defective manufacture, defective design, and failure to warn the public about serious risk involved in using the product. This is sometimes referred to as marketing defects. Defective manufacturing takes place during the making of the product and more often than not it involves low quality material and lousy workmanship. Design defects speak to the way the product is designed, usually with attention paid to inherent dangers that might occur during use. Flawed or defective marketing occurs when the public is not adequately warned about possible risk and dangers that could be averted, if the customer is first informed.
Another form of product liability is breach of warranty. A warranty breach happens in three ways, breach of an express warranty, breach of an implied warranty and breach of an implied warranty of fitness for a particular use. A good example of an express warranty is the manufacturer stating that his reciprocating saw is great for cutting up chicken. An implied warranty covers the common expectations of all products, in other words that the tool or product is not dangerous when used properly.
Allegations of negligence in product liability suits usually focus on the behavior of the manufacturer, while strict liability suits focus on the product itself. Under strict liability statutes the manufacturer is liable if the product is defective even though the manufacturer may not be negligent. The trouble with alleging negligence is that the plaintiff, of the person bringing suit has to prove the company's conduct was below standard. This means the court will look at the standards of the whole industry in order to determine what is below standard, and this may well mean that the plaintiff will lose his or her suit even if they were seriously injured during the use of the product in question. Because, if the whole industry is below standard, but the company charged is in line with the low industry standard, then under the law it does not constitute negligence.
This burden of proof which has existed for several years, and is widely held to be weighted in favor of manufacturers has slowly been changed by the courts to grant more relief to the consumer, especially if the consumer was very seriously injured. Consumer protection has grown stronger with states enacting statutes providing certain remedies for a variety of different product defects. Probably the best known consumer protection product liability laws are the lemon laws. Lemon laws primarily apply to new cars that were defective in manufacture. Car makers must now make good on these bad automobiles.
If you feel you have a product liability claim, contact an defective products lawyer who specializes in personal injury to discuss your options.