Products liability

Generally speaking, "products liability" (or defective products) refers to the liability of a manufacturer, seller, or other person or individual responsible for placing a product in the stream of commerce for property damage or personal injuries that the product caused. Although manufacturers of products that harm or injure consumers are liable for injuries, they are not insurers of the safe use of a product.

A manufacturer’s duty to provide an appropriate warning is virtually absolute for products which contain dangerous or toxic ingredients which are not obvious to the typical user. Further, the failure to provide a warning constitutes negligence. Moreover, it may even be negligence in failing to label as toxic a product with a known toxicity. In deciding whether there is a duty to warn, a supplier or manufacturer must consider the common knowledge held by foreseeable users, as well as whether the warning would reach users.

If a product’s manufacturer knows that when there is a severe reaction to the product, the person will die without an antidote, and the need for the antidote would not be known to an ordinary purchaser, a label is inadequate if it only states that if an allergic reaction sets in, the product should be discontinued.

Under the Texas Civil Practices and Remedies Code, a product manufacturer or seller is not liable if:

There are several kinds of products liability actions. These include manufacturing defect, design defect and marketing defect (such as the failure to warn of a toxic product). To prove that a product is defective, it must be shown that the product was unreasonably dangerous in construction, in design, or because inadequate instructions or warnings were provided.

Our firm represents products liability clients in Corpus Christi, Galveston, Brownsville, Laredo, and all of Texas. Contact Corpus Christi defective product attorney Scott Nelson if you need help with a defective product lawsuit.