Defective products can spawn serious and deadly outcomes
Many parents in the Oklahoma City metro area and elsewhere across the state are likely now turning their thoughts to the upcoming year-end holiday season. For legions of moms and dads, that logically enough leads to a discussion of what Santa might be bringing the kids. Children are of course attuned to the possibilities, and often enough signal to parents quite quickly a particular toy they have in mind. As a parent, you expect the toy your child covets to come as advertised, right? Above all else, you reasonably believe that it will be safe. Sadly, it doesn’t always turn out that way.
The product liability realm: consumers’ justifiable expectations
Courts in Oklahoma and across the country have long overseen defective product cases pursuant to a judicial mindset wrapped around common sense and a firmly established legal principle.
That is this: Manufacturers of products that are sold in the marketplace have a duty to ensure that those goods are safe for users. Consumers must be able to assume that a purchased product will work as advertised and meet ordinary expectations. A shaver should cut whiskers, not skin. A medical device should promote health, not undermine it. Batteries should power products, not explode or catch fire.
In fact, it is not product makers alone who have potential culpability in a defective products case. An in-depth overview of product liability duly notes that, “Liability for a product defect can rest with any party in the product’s chain of distribution.” That includes these actors in addition to a goods manufacturer:
- Maker of component/auxiliary parts
- Product designer
- Product installer or assembler
- Wholesale entity
- Retailer at the point of sale
- Packager and/or marketing teams with warning/labeling duties
Accountability following an adverse result linked with product use is thus scattered and diffuse. That is centrally important to note for victims and loved ones seeking accountability and a legal remedy in the wake of an injury.
Purposeful response to injury linked with a defective product
Time can be of the essence in a product liability case, so it is important for an injured party (or, sometimes, family members seeking to proceed with a wrongful death claim) to move with dispatch.
An experienced personal injury legal team with proven acumen in defective product cases can help guide the process and work diligently to promote an optimal outcome. A meaningful remedy can spotlight accountability, deter future misfortunes for other consumers and secure maximum compensation applicable to medical outlays, lost wages, long-term expenses and other needs.
