Florence Product Liability Lawyer

What is product liability?

Product liability is a legal concept that can come into play if you sustain injuries or death from a product that is defective. The manufacturers and suppliers of that product may be held liable for compensatory damages connected with your injuries or your loved one’s death. You must file a claim against the liable party proving that the product was defective and/or failed to operate in a reasonably safe way. You must show that, because of its defectiveness, it was the cause of the injuries or death. This can apply to any consumer product, from cars to household goods to pharmaceuticals, medical devices, products for children, power tools and equipment, appliances, food products, and more.

How do I know if I have a product liability case or not?

If you believe your case fits the description above, you should get the advice and guidance of one of our Florence product liability attorneys at McCutcheon & Hamner. You will need a knowledgeable lawyer who has extensive experience in faulty or defective products to review your case. Our firm has handled many product liability cases for injured clients over the decades we have been in practice. We are well-versed in product liability law, what needs to be done, and what it takes to prevail in these often very technical and complex claims and lawsuits.

What types of defects fall under product liability?

Consumer products can be defective or fail to be safe in countless ways. However, defects are generally categorized into three groups:

• The manufacturing of the product was defective in some way. This means that the making of the particular product you used was faulty. It could have been faulty in its assembly, in the materials used, or in some other way as it was being manufactured.
• The design of the product was flawed or defective. This does not apply to one specific product but to the overall product line in general. How the product was designed led to it being unsafe when used as directed by consumers.
• The marketing of the product was defective. This defect could be that proper instructions as to how to safely use the product were lacking or that the manufacturer failed to provide sufficient warnings as to the potential effects the product could have on the consumer’s health, property, or other aspect of his or her life.

An example of a defective product that has been in the news is the popular weedkiller Roundup. Consumers who have used the product have alleged that exposure to it has led to diagnosis of a type of cancer called non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. This has resulted in thousands of lawsuits against the manufacturer for a failure to warn consumers of the health risk of using this product.

How do you prove a product liability case?

In order to prevail in court in a product liability claim, you must demonstrate that the product was defective or dangerous in some way and, that by using it, the defect resulted in your injuries along with all of the injury-related expenses that followed. You also must have been using the product for its intended purpose and in a reasonable manner. An injury sustained while using any product does not automatically qualify you for a product liability claim. The above factors must be proven in court.

Who is actually held liable in a product liability case?

Those can be held responsible for injuries suffered from a defective product include all parties who were in the “chain of distribution.” This refers to all of those entities who were involved from the time and place of manufacture to where the product was distributed. This can include manufacturers, retailers, wholesalers, other suppliers, designers, and more. It is important to name all of these parties in a claim or lawsuit who might have had something to do with the product’s defect.