Products Liability

Question 1

Prima facie case for strict liability action based on supplying a defective product

Answer 1

A product can be the basis for a products liability action when it is in a defective condition unreasonably dangerous to users. When the product as supplied is different than the way it should have been when supplied it is characterized as a manufacturing defect.
The prima facie case for a strict liability action based on supplying a defective product requires:
1. a commercial supplier;
2. production or sale of a defective product unreasonably dangerous to users;
3. actual and proximate cause; and
4. damages.
The defendant must be a commercial supplier of the product in question to impose strict liability; a casual seller will not be strictly liable.
A commercial supplier’s potential liability extents to all foreseeable plaintiffs.
A products liability action based on strict liability applies to any commercial supplier, including a retailer of a defective product. The retailer may be liable for a manufacturing or design defect simply because it was a commercial supplier of a defective product, even if it had no opportunity to inspect the manufacturer’s product before selling it.
A plaintiff’s misuse of a product will not prevent recovery if the misuse was reasonably foreseeable.
A product is legally defective if it was unreasonably dangerous and could be made safer by adequate warnings.

Question 2

UCC action based on breach of the implied warranty of merchantability

Answer 2

To establish an action based on breach of the implied warranty of merchantability under the UCC, the plaintiff must show:
1. the defendant is a merchant who deals in the kind of goods sold;
2 the goods were not fit for the ordinary purposes for which such goods are sold;
3. the goods were the actual and proximate cause of injury to the plaintiff; and
4. the plaintiff suffered economic loss or damages to person or property.