Product liability refers to a manufacturer or seller being held liable for placing a defective product into the hands of a consumer. Responsibility for a product defect that causes injury lies with all sellers of the product who are in the chain of distribution.  Potentially liable parties include: the manufacturer; a manufacturer of component parts; the wholesaler, and the retail store that sold the product to the consumer.

A person injured by a defective or dangerous product may be able to bring an action for product liability and recover damages under one of the following theories: 1) strict product liability; 2) negligence; or, 3) breach of warranty.

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 Strict product liability refers to one of the theories under which a plaintiff can proceed when bringing an action based upon an injury caused by a product.  In a strict product liability action, a plaintiff can recover damages without showing that the manufacturer or seller of a product was negligent.

There are two types of warranties: 1) implied warranties; and, 2) express warranties. You might be able to recover for a breach of an implied warranty if your state has implied warranty statutes, which are usually found in a state's commercial code and are not specific to particular types of product, but are implied under the law to cover most categories of products. You might recover for a breach of express warranty if the seller or manufacturer of a product expressly extended a warranty to you, in writing or verbally, and the product injured you.

Implied warranties are established by state law, and apply to most products sold within the state.  Some examples of implied warranties include the "warranty of merchantability," and the "warranty of fitness for a particular purpose."  In essence, these warranties state that a product will be fit and safe for its intended purpose.

There are very specific rules governing how a manufacturer must disclaim any warranties that are implied under state law. Specific, conspicuous language is required.  If the manufacturer successfully disclaimed all implied warranties, you cannot recover for a breach of such warranties.  However, you should not make this determination yourself.  Show all the documents that came with the product to an attorney at LOVETT & LOVETT.