Defective products pose a threat to consumer safety. Holding the responsible parties to account is important not just to recover compensation for the individuals injured by a defect, but to ensure that dangerous products are identified and removed from the market before they can do further harm. If you have suffered injury due to a defect in a product you were using, a conversation with one of the product liability lawyers at Betz & Port, P.A. may help you to understand your legal options for pursuing a claim. Call our office at (763) 323-6911 to connect with our team.
What Type of Lawyer Practices Product Liability?
In a few cases where a defective product is under warranty and the manufacturer or third-party guarantor of warranty refuses to honor a valid warranty claim, a case involving a hazardous or malfunctioning product may fall under the umbrella of contract law. For the most part, however, defective product lawsuits will be civil tort claims. A “tort” is a legally recognized wrong or fault, and civil tort law covers a variety of scenarios in which one party’s tort may have harmed someone else.
Civil Cases
You are likely familiar with the notion of “bringing to justice” individuals who have been accused of criminal wrongdoing. Civil tort cases are different because they are not tried by state or federal prosecutors, but brought directly by the party claiming to have been harmed, and the outcome of a successful case by the plaintiff is not a criminal conviction but a judgment of liability – legal responsibility for making right the harms that have resulted from the defendant’s conduct.
Personal Injury
Most product liability cases belong to a subcategory of civil tort called “personal injury” law. The term personal injury can be somewhat confusing, as in legal contexts it does not necessarily mean a physical wound inflicted directly on an individual’s body. As the Legal Information Institute (LII) explains, a “personal” injury may be a bodily wound, but it may also be an injury to an individual’s emotions or reputation; it is called “personal” injury to distinguish this type of case from one involving infringement on property rights.
Product liability is only one of a few distinct case types in the area of personal injury law; the claims arising from auto accidents are typical personal injury examples, and many states also place medical malpractice in this category. Some personal injury lawyers handle all or most of the types of cases that are classified as personal injury lawsuits; others keep their focus on a select few, or even just one. If you see a listing for a “product liability lawyer,” that may not mean that the attorney only accepts product liability cases; instead, it is usually meant to clarify that the attorney includes product liability claims in their practice.
How To Win a Product Liability Lawsuit?
Many Minnesota product liability lawsuits are based on the legal theory of strict liability, under which a defendant may be held liable for certain types of torts even if they were not negligent. States vary in whether they apply the principle of strict liability to product liability cases, and under what circumstances. In Minnesota, a plaintiff may bring a product liability case on the basis of either strict liability or negligence.
The legal basis claimed for the case will set up the points, or “elements,” the plaintiff will need to prove in order to win a favorable verdict. One of the first steps our product liability lawyers at Betz & Port, P.A. will take in reviewing a new case is to assess which legal basis is most appropriate to the circumstances.
What Is the Difference Between Strict Liability vs. Negligence?
Personal injury cases in United States jurisprudence traditionally recognize three distinct types of tort:
- Negligence
- Intentional or deliberate tort
- Strict liability
Just because these types of tort are recognized under the law does not mean that they can be applied interchangeably to any personal injury case. Instead, it is important to bring legal action against a tortfeasor (someone who has committed a tort) on the type of tort that fits the facts of the individual situation. A thorough knowledge of the legal theory behind these distinct types is important to the work of not just a product liability lawyer, but any attorney practicing personal injury law.
Negligence
Negligence is the legal principle behind the majority of lawsuits handled in Minnesota personal injury cases; it proceeds from the assumption that members of a society generally have a duty to take reasonable measures to avoid causing unnecessary harm to others as they go about their daily activities. The plaintiff in a personal injury case brought on this basis will need to start by proving that the defendant owed the plaintiff this “duty of care” under the circumstances; if the plaintiff can also show that the defendant breached this duty and the breach led to the plaintiff’s injuries, then the defendant may be held liable for negligence and required to pay damages – financial compensation for the harms resulting from their conduct.
Intentional Torts
Intentional torts are instances in which someone deliberately sets up the conditions for someone else to be harmed. Although this type of tort can be difficult to prove, “intent” does not necessarily mean reading a defendant’s mind; as the Legal Information Institute (LII) explains, intent may be general or specific, and in some instances may apply even when not all the consequences of the voluntary tortious action were intended. Producers and purveyors of goods have little incentive for deliberately creating conditions hazardous to their own customers, so intentional tort is not usually claimed as the basis for a product liability lawsuit.
Strict Liability
Strict liability is a legal principle that only applies to civil cases under very limited circumstances. The two dominant types of tort case that can be brought on the basis of strict liability, according to LII, are “abnormally dangerous activities” – broadly speaking, activities which are not ordinarily accepted daily conduct and for which a high risk of harm is reasonably foreseeable – and the possession of certain animals (dogs known to be aggressive are the most commonly cited example, but the actual requirements vary significantly by jurisdiction). However, as LII also points out, in some states, strict liability may be applied to cases in which a defective product has caused injury.
Strict Liability vs. Negligence in Product Liability Claims
In many jurisdictions, as in Minnesota, product liability claims may also be brought on the basis of negligence. The main difference that many product liability lawyers will discuss with their clients as they prepare a case is that in a product liability case based on strict liability, proving that the product had a defect and the defect caused harm is usually sufficient to win the case; even if the party responsible for the defect (typically but not necessarily the manufacturer) was not negligent and intended no harm, they may still be held liable for damages.
Because plaintiffs generally have fewer elements to prove in cases based on strict liability than in cases alleging negligence, Minnesota law takes some pains to make sure that the right party is being sued as the defendant in a product liability case. Minn. Rev. Stat. § 544.41 specifies requirements for identifying the manufacturer of an allegedly defective product, and Minnesota courts will dismiss strict product liability cases brought against parties other than the manufacturer except under certain limited circumstances. The plaintiff in each case is responsible for showing that their claim meets the requirements for one of those exceptions.
Speak With a Minnesota Product Liability Lawyer
If you have been injured by a defective product, you may be able to recover compensation from the manufacturer or another party whose actions led to the defect that caused your injury. Your legal options will depend on the circumstances of your case and how these fit the intricacies of Minnesota product liability law. A product liability lawyer with Betz & Port, P.A. may be able to help you review the facts of your situation and evaluate the strength of your claim. Call (763) 323-6911 to schedule a consultation.