Defective products can lead to serious injury and liability for damages. Murphy, Falcon & Murphy law firm has extensive experience recovering substantial damages for their clients, and can help you navigate the complicated world of defective product injuries and product liability.

Product Defects

When someone is injured by a product, there might be a defect in the product that caused their injury. If this is the case, an individual may be able to recover damages for their injury from the manufacturer, distributor, or wholesaler of the product. Who is responsible for the injury is related to the type of defect that lead to the injury.

Under federal law, there are two main categories of defects: design related defects and manufacturing related defects.

  • Design Defects

Defects in the design of a product are flaws in the original design plan. These defects cause all of the products to be dangerous. This means that everyone who uses the product can be exposed to the risk presented by the flaw. The litmus test to determine if there is a design defect includes three questions:

  • Is it reasonable to assume that it could be foreseen that the product could harm someone?
  • Was the design of the product dangerous before it was produced?
  • Is there a way that the product could have been designed more safely without altering the product’s purpose?

If “yes” is the answer to any of the three questions, there may be a case for design defect.

  • Manufacturing Defects

These defects are caused by the process used to manufacture the product rather than the design. The defect is not an intentional part of the design and was produced by the way it was manufactured. When this is the case, the defect will not necessarily affect all of the products. It could even be that only one batch of the products was produced with the defect. In this case, it’s the manufacturer, not the designer of the product, that is responsible for the injury it caused.

Failure to Warn

Another reason that a product liability lawsuit may be appropriate is when there are risks related to a product that the manufacturer fails to warn the user about. This type of liability may apply to other people in the chain of distribution, as well.

Warning Labels

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) is responsible for the rules and regulations related to product labels, safety symbols, and signs. In 2002, the organization made substantial changes to the guidelines. The changes made it so signs are to have more detailed explanations, they should be easier to read, and they should use pictures to illustrate the safety risks.

The ANSI guidelines are that warning labels should inform consumers of:

  • What the existing hazards of the product are
  • How severe the risks are
  • The possible outcome of the hazard
  • How the hazard can be avoided

Product Liability Cases

Product liability cases usually fall into one of three different types: negligence, strict liability, or breach of warranty.

  • Negligence. In these cases, it must be proven that there was carelessness in the manufacturing or design process of the product.
  • Strict liability. These cases only require that the plaintiff prove that the defect exists and caused or contributed to their injury.
  • Breach of warranty. The express warranty relates to the direct claims made by the manufacturer or retailer about the product’s safety. The implied warranty refers to a promise that is implied by the liable party that the product is safe if the buyer uses the product as it’s intended to be used.

Class Action or Individual Lawsuits

If a defective product injures a large group of people, it may be appropriate to file the lawsuit as a class action or mass tort. Whether your case warrants a class action or is better filed alone, if you’ve been injured by a product, you need to contact an attorney right away to preserve your rights. The attorneys at Murphy, Falcon & Murphy have successfully fought for the rights of plaintiffs injured by defective products. It’s important to contact us right away so we can help you recover and make sure others are kept safe.