What is product
liability?
Who can be held responsible for the injuries caused by a
dangerous product?
Can
the vendor or store owner selling a dangerous product be held
responsible for injuries caused by the purchased item?
How
is it proven that a product is "dangerous"?
What types of damages
may be sought in a product liability lawsuit?
Is there a Federal
product liability law?
What is product
liability?
Manufacturers of food products, drinks, engineering goods,
medicines, etc are expected to be careful in their production.
If they fail in their duty, they are liable to pay compensation
for the consequences because their defective products might
cause loss of life and damage to property.
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Who can be held responsible for the injuries
caused by a dangerous product?
Depending on the circumstances, it is possible that any of the
following could be held responsible: the manufacturer of
the product, the manufacturer of defective components of the
product, the distributor of the product, the vendor of the
product.
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Can the vendor or store owner selling a
dangerous product be held responsible for injuries caused by the
purchased item?
In many instances, not only the manufacturer, but also the
wholesalers, distributors, and sellers can be held responsible
for injuries or death caused by a defective product.
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How is it proven
that a product is "dangerous"?
There are several legal
approaches:
- Negligence - this would
involve proving the manufacturer failed to use "ordinary" or
"reasonable" care
- Strict Liability - this
would involve proving that the product was "unreasonably
dangerous" by defect in design, how it was made, or how it was
marketed
- Breach of Warranty - this
would involve the reasonable expectation of the product and
its performance. The warranty can be implied, not
necessarily in writing.
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What types of
damages may be sought in a product liability lawsuit?
A person injured due to a defective product may seek
compensation for:
- medical expenses
- physical pain and suffering
- mental anguish
- disfigurement
- physical impairment
- loss of earning capacity
- property damage
- punitive damages
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Is there a
Federal product liability law?
There is no federal product liability law. Typically, product
liability claims are based on state laws, and brought under the
theories of negligence, strict liability, or breach of warranty.
In addition, a set of commercial statutes in each state, modeled
on the Uniform Commercial Code, will contain warranty rules
affecting product liability.
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