We encounter thousands of products every day of our lives. If a product is defective, it can cause personal injury, property damage, even death. In these instances, damages may be recovered through a product liability lawsuit.
Causes of action
Many legal theories can apply to this sort of lawsuit. For instance:
- Strict liability: The plaintiff must show the product was unreasonably flawed, and the damages sustained were caused by this flaw.
- Negligence: The plaintiff must show that the defendant had a duty of care; that the duty of care was breached; the defendant’s actions were the cause of injury; the harm was foreseeable; and measurable injury or damage was sustained.
- Breach of express or implied warranty: Either it has been explicitly communicated or it can re reasonably expected that the product would do x-y-z, and then it didn’t.
Medical product liability trial
IA trial recently took place in Dallas, Texas for a product liability claim against a mesh manufacturer. It was alleged that the mesh implant the plaintiff-patient received contained the chemical polypropylene, which the manufacturer knew could trigger a serious human tissue reaction.
Because of this implant, the patient sustained chronic pain and other injuries. She was seeking $28 million for damages and for pain and suffering.
The manufacturer prevailed, however, arguing that a proper standard of care had been met, and that the implant had been safely used with thousands of other patients to no ill effect. Further, there were no defects found in the research, development or marketing of the product.
Every case must be sorted out on its own merits. If you have sustained harm because of a faulty product, it would be beneficial to consult with an attorney experienced in this area of the law to explore what options might be available.
