Christmas is almost here, and if you have children at home, you’ve probably spent a great deal of time and money trying to make this year’s holidays memorable for them. Opening Christmas presents is exciting for children, but there are a few toys that parents might want to avoid this year. A consumer advocacy group called World Against Toys Causing Harm, more commonly known as W.A.T.C.H., releases an annual list of toys that have the potential to be dangerous.
Personal injuries resulting from dangerous products is a field covered by product liability law. Product liability lawsuits occur when a consumer seeks compensation from a manufacturer or seller due to an injury caused by one of their products.
Manufactures are required to ensure that their products are not unreasonably dangerous. They are further required to warn buyers of the dangers associated with the use of their product. If they fail to do either, they may be liable for an injury sustained by the consumer.
While many personal injury cases require that the injured party show some sort of negligence of behalf of the other party, product liability is different. In Wisconsin, product liability cases do not necessarily require the injured party to show that the manufacturer or seller of the product was negligent.
In Wisconsin, there are three categories of product liability:
1. Breach of Warranty: These cases involve some type of warranty made by the manufacturer or seller that was violated and then caused injuries to the user.
2. Common Law Negligence: Wisconsin manufacturers and suppliers must ensure that they use ordinary care not to create an unreasonable risk of injury to the user of a product when the product is used in its intended manner.
3. Strict liability in Tort: Manufacturers, distributers, wholesalers, and retailers may all be at fault under strict liability if the injured party proves that:
The product’s defect was unreasonably dangerous;
That the product was defective when it left the seller;
That the defect caused an injury;
That the seller sold the product; and,
That the product was one that the seller expected the buyer to use.
At Levine Eisberner LLC, we can help you if you or a loved one sustains an injury as the result of a defective or dangerous product. You have the right to file a suit if an unreasonably dangerous product causes an injury. Do not wait until it is too late to seek a claim as the statute of limitation for a product liability claim is three years from the date of the injury. Call us today for a free consultation at 1-888-367-8198.