Defective Products and Strict Liability
The main thing to remember about Defective Products is that if you are injured by one, you need to see a lawyer right away. The next thing to remember is to not blame yourself for getting injured by a defective product. If a toaster shocks you instead of toasting your bread, or a washer grabs your arm and wrings it instead of your clothes, or your jet-ski takes off by itself and runs down your friend, there's a tendency to say that you screwed up. Well, let the defense lawyer do that, as (s)he most assuredly will. Don't get a guilty conscience. You paid for a product that would do what you expected it to do, not for one that would injure you.
Nowadays, many products are made in distant lands. Who will your lawyer sue if the toaster that electrocutes your kid was made by an obscure company in Taiwan? Well, there is a useful doctrine that makes large retailers like WalMart, Costco, K-Mart, Lowes, Eagle, Ace Hardware and all the rest, legally responsible for “placing defective products in the stream of interstate commerce.” Since these big retailers get the profits from selling dangerous, gimcracky products, they have to shoulder responsibility for the physical and financial injury their customers suffer from using those products.
In the context of defective automobiles, this means that not only the automaker (like Ford, GMC or Toyota), but also the dealer, may be held liable for the injuries caused by a defective product.
Defective Product laws are governed by the states. To find a good defective product lawyer, research to find those who have previously scored big verdicts in the field. Defective products lawyers often specialize in particular products. These cases require expensive experts to win, so unless your injury is substantial, you may have a hard time finding a lawyer.
Please see our general information under Accidents for more guidance on dealing with a personal injury claim.
Nowadays, many products are made in distant lands. Who will your lawyer sue if the toaster that electrocutes your kid was made by an obscure company in Taiwan? Well, there is a useful doctrine that makes large retailers like WalMart, Costco, K-Mart, Lowes, Eagle, Ace Hardware and all the rest, legally responsible for “placing defective products in the stream of interstate commerce.” Since these big retailers get the profits from selling dangerous, gimcracky products, they have to shoulder responsibility for the physical and financial injury their customers suffer from using those products.
In the context of defective automobiles, this means that not only the automaker (like Ford, GMC or Toyota), but also the dealer, may be held liable for the injuries caused by a defective product.
Defective Product laws are governed by the states. To find a good defective product lawyer, research to find those who have previously scored big verdicts in the field. Defective products lawyers often specialize in particular products. These cases require expensive experts to win, so unless your injury is substantial, you may have a hard time finding a lawyer.
Please see our general information under Accidents for more guidance on dealing with a personal injury claim.