Category Archives: Product Liability

No Magic Words

A woman had a pacemaker. She went to her doctor. She was told her pacemaker had about five to six months battery life before needing to be replaced. A month later, the woman died of cardiac arrhythmia. During an autopsy the pacemaker was removed and tested. The battery voltage was below end-of-life level, contrary to […]

Couple Receive Harley-Davidson Recall Notice the Day after Husband Killed in Accident

Our personal injury law firm did not participate in the lawsuit described in this article. A man was killed and his wife injured when the Harley-Davidson motorcycle he was riding crossed several lanes and collided with a guardrail. The next day the wife received a recall notice informing her that the main circuit breaker on […]

Toyota Defects Lead to Injury Lawsuits

By now we have all heard about the Toyota recalls. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration five deaths and 17 injuries have been attributed to unintended acceleration in Toyota vehicles since 2006.[1]

Dismissal of Products Liability Case Upheld

By personal injury lawyer Scott Eller In a recent opinion the Washington Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal of a products liability case brought against the retail business that sold an allegedly defective bicycle. The plaintiff had been injured when the front tire of the bicycle failed the very first time he rode the bicycle. […]

Breach of Warranty

A product liability claim may be based on breach of warranty. A manufacturer may be liable under Washington products liability law even in the absence of design defects, construction defects, or a failure to warn if the product fails a warranty. A warranty may be expressed or implied.

Failure to Warn

A product liability claim may be based on a theory of failure to warn.[1] The standard, like design defect product liability claims, is the reasonable expectations of the consumer rather than foreseeability.[2]

Design Defects

To prove a design defect products liability claim the injured party must prove that a manufacturer’s product was not reasonable safe as designed and caused injury.[1] The injured part may prove a design defect by either of two tests, the risk-utility test or the consumer expectations test.[2]

Manufacturing Defect

Manufacturers are strictly liable in a products liability claim for an injury proximately caused by a “defect in construction”.[1] Unlike a design defect or failure to warn, a manufacturing defect is a defect in the construction of the particular product rather than the entire product line.