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Home » Consumer Information » Personal Injury » Proof of Liability

Product Liability Law

Product liability law oversees liability as it pertains to manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors, and retailers for harm caused by risky or faulty goods. Product liability law aims to shield consumers from these perils by holding these groups responsible for leaking products onto the market that they had prior knowledge or should have known were unsafe or flawed. Depending on regional legislation, the amount of liability wavers as the product makes its way down the supply chain.

Depending on local jurisdiction, product liability lawsuits can be based on:

  • Design defects -- caused by carelessness during the design process, making it unsafe to use the product as directed or for another acceptable purpose.
  • Manufacturing defects -- caused by a mistake in the fabrication process.
  • Marketing defects -- include insufficient warning labels or directions that may conceal a defect from the consumer or cause confusion as to how the product can be safely used or applied.

Also depending on jurisdiction, the claimant must choose from three different liability issues to target the defendant. If the situation calls for it, more than one of the following theories can be utilized:

  • Negligence -- claimant must prove that the entities responsible for releasing the goods into the marketplace had a duty to offer a product fit for its recommended use, would have caught the defect during the design, manufacturing, or inspection processes had they practiced reasonable care, and failed to live up to standards. The claimant also must've been harmed by the product as a result of its flaws while using it as directed.
  • Strict liability -- claimant must prove that a product is faulty regardless of the level of care that went into the design, fabrication, marketing, circulation, and sale of the merchandise.
  • Breach of warranty -- a violation of the contract of fitness between a manufacturer or retailer and the consumer. A breach of express warranty means that a product's written warranty has been infringed upon, while a breach of implied warranty means that even though the product does not have an express warranty associated with it, or the suspected flaw is not addressed in the express warranty, an imperfection in the product makes it unfit for its anticipated use.

If you have been involved in a product liability case and are unsure of your rights as a claimant, do not hesitate to contact a Florida personal injury lawyer today.