Winning a product liability case can be a challenge in many ways and a good product liability lawyer can quickly determine in what circumstances an injury occurred as a result of a defective product. In fact, product cases are much different than those needing a car or truck accident lawyer. There are three things that the attorney will have to prove in these cases including that the product was defective, the injury was sustained due to the use of the defective product and the injury was caused by the product.
Laws governing product liability vary among states and some of them require that the injured party prove the product was defective and was also unreasonably dangerous, defined that it presented a danger even when used by a reasonable customer. Most states understand that some products are inherently dangerous such as guns and knives, but if the product is used in a manner that is consistent with the use by ordinary consumers, and it causes an injury, the injury lawyer may still be able to make a case for recovery of damages.
In most product liability cases defendants will maintain that the product did not cause the injury rather it was the way in which the product was used. They may also assert that the user was not using the product in its intended manner and they had no way to know that a reasonable person would use their product in such a manner. Essentially, defendants will argue that any injuries from using their product were a result of how the product was used and not any defect in the product.
In many cases claims about product liability wind up in arguments between experts for the defense and plaintiff experts arguing about the product safety and how even when used according to manufacturer's directions can cause harm or injury. For instance, recent recalls of small toys that had an excess of lead in their paint could be arguably safe since they are not meant to placed in the mouth by small children. However, experts for the plaintiff will argue that manufacturers know that many small children will put small objects in their mouth and should be held responsible if they ingest lead content that is above the limits placed on the content by the government.
In some cases there may also be claims of comparative negligence meaning that the injury occurred due to the way a product was used and the injured party needs to bear a certain portion of the blame for the injury. While this is also a common defense, a good product liability lawyer can still provide recovery of the portion of the claim for which the company is held responsible.
There may also be instances where your actions are questioned when involved in an accident. For example, if you are working with a defective power tool and had a few too many drinks and the tool breaks causing an accident. The product liability lawyer can help prove the accident was the fault of the defective tool not the fact that you may been inebriated at the time and remove drinking from being a fault of the accident.
