Legal Theories in Product Liability Claims

If you have suffered an injury due to a defective product, you may file a defective product liability claim based on different legal theories such as strict liability, negligence, breach of warranty and fraud. The paragraphs below outline the elements of the most common legal theories used in a product liability claim.

Strict product liability

In a strict product liability case, a victim must prove that:

·         A product was sold with no warning or inadequate warning.

·         A product was sold in an unreasonably dangerous condition.

·         The victim or the victim’s property was injured by the defective product.

Fraud

In a product liability case based on a “fraud”, a victim must prove that:

·         The representations made by the defendant about the product were not true.

·         The defendant was aware that those representations were not true or were not likely to be true.

·         The representations were made in such a way that the victim would buy the product.

·         The victim was justified in relying on the representations.

·         The defendant’s false representations caused damage to the victim.

Negligence

In a product liability case based on negligence, a victim must prove that:

·         The defendant owed a duty of care.

·         The defendant’s actions breached that duty of care.

·         The defendant’s breach caused the victim injuries.

Breach of warranty

In a product liability case based on “breach of warranty,” a victim must prove that:

·         The product had an expressor implied warranty.

The product failed to meet the terms of the warranty.