Product Liability Lawsuit: How to File & Prove (2025)

Every day there are news stories about products that do not work as intended. These defective products often cause injuries and may go so far as to cause diseases and death.

Fortunately, the law gives affected victims and their families the right to file a product liability lawsuit against the companies responsible for harming them.

However, product liability cases involve some unusual processes and legal theories that do not apply to many other cases. Nevertheless, it is these processes that give injured consumers many options for pursuing claims against powerful multinational corporations.

With that in mind, below is a detailed breakdown of how these lawsuits are filed and what you can expect to encounter while doing so.

Legal Theories for Product Liability Claims

As mentioned, consumers injured by defective or faulty products have many options when filing a product liability claim. These include claims regarding negligence and breaches of warranty, but the most prevalent of these options involves strict liability,

Strict Liability

When filing a case on the grounds of strict liability, your lawyer will only need to prove the product was defective and that such a defect caused your injury. You can meet the first element by establishing any of the following:

• Design defects that make the product inherently dangerous
• Manufacturing defects introduced in the factory, such as incorrectly installed sealing gaskets on a pressure cooker
• Warning defects (failures in explaining a product’s proper and safe uses)

An example of a design defect can be seen in a dangerous drug. If a drug has a serious, unavoidable side effect, such as developing cancer after taking Zantac as intended, it may be considered to have a design defect.

Manufacturing defects happen when the factory developing the product in question introduces a problem that makes it dangerous. Thus, a manufacturing defect would be found in a tire with a layer of adhesive that is thinner than designed due to a factory error.

An example of a product with an alleged warning defect is Roundup, a popular pesticide. As detailed in several Roundup lawsuits, the manufacturer failed to warn users about the risks associated with the product. It also failed to inform users to use respirators or other breathing protection while using the product.

Proving Strict Liability in Product Liability Cases

In a strict liability case, you don’t have to prove that the designer or manufacturer was negligent. Instead, your legal team must successfully prove the following:

• The product was defective
• The defect existed when the product left the defendant’s hand
• The defect was directly responsible for your injury

The standards for proving whether a given product is defective can vary significantly between jurisdictions. A product liability attorney can evaluate the details of your case and tell you whether you’re a good candidate for a product liability lawsuit.

Types of Product Liability Cases

There are three main categories of product liability cases: defects in product design, manufacturing defects, and marketing defects.

Defects in Product Design

In some cases, the way a product is designed makes it inherently dangerous. For example, a power tool with no safety guard could be considered as having a design defect.

Manufacturing Defects

A manufacturing defect usually affects a single unit or a batch of products. If a toy manufacturer uses weak plastic on one production run, for instance, toys from that run may break and harm children.

Marketing Defects

In some cases, the problem doesn’t necessarily lie with the product itself, but there may be insufficient warning labels or instructions. An example could be an inner tube that is advertised as a toy for children and includes no weight limit, but it sinks if a child weighing more than 50 pounds uses it. The parents of an injured child might then have grounds for a lawsuit.

How to Prove Negligence in Product Liability Cases

Some product liability cases are based on negligence. To establish that a manufacturer or designer was negligent, you must prove the following:

• The manufacturer/designer owed you a duty of care
• They breached that duty
• The breach caused your injuries
• You have damages to collect as a result

Your attorney can advise you on whether you need to file a strict liability lawsuit or one based on negligence.

Procedures for Handling Defective Product Lawsuits

Product liability cases usually take one of two forms. In one, a lead plaintiff will file a class action lawsuit, and other similarly situated plaintiffs can then join in. Class action suits can, therefore, benefit multiple plaintiffs at once. Their main drawback, however, is that each plaintiff will often receive compensation for only a fraction of their losses.

The second form of a product liability case is an individual lawsuit. In these, the plaintiff will present their own unique losses. As a result, they can fight for full compensation that covers all of their losses. Plaintiffs have a better chance of recovering full compensation in an individual lawsuit than in a class action. However, the weakness in such cases is that you lose the efficiency of a class action suit with regard to gathering evidence and filing motions.

When multiple individual lawsuits are filed in federal courts, a judicial panel can transfer all the cases to the same judge and consolidate them in a multidistrict litigation (MDL) case. These individual litigations remain separate, but the plaintiffs can share the costs and burdens of gathering evidence and filing motions. Thus, an MDL combines the benefits of a class action and an individual suit.

What to Expect From Product Liability Lawsuit Settlements

Product liability settlements take different forms depending on the type of case. If you are a member of a class action suit, the settlement will cover all the members of the class. Covered members can choose to opt out of the settlement and preserve their right to file an individual lawsuit. If they proceed to not take any action, they will receive their share of the settlement and waive their right to file an individual lawsuit.

Settlements obtained in individual lawsuits are often larger than those of class actions, as the plaintiff will negotiate directly with the at-fault manufacturer. But with that in mind, a plaintiff might not have the leverage to push the manufacturer to the negotiating table in the first place.

An MDL case can be resolved by a global settlement, which will cover all the cases included within. Usually, a predetermined percentage of the plaintiffs must agree to the settlement terms for the MDL judge to approve it. These settlements typically fall between class action settlements and individual settlements in value.

Understanding Damages in Product Liability Lawsuits

If you win your lawsuit, you may be awarded damages, or compensation for losses. Economic damages compensate you for monetary losses like medical expenses, and non-economic damages compensate you for intangible losses like pain and suffering.

How Manufacturers Are Held Accountable for Harmful Products

When manufacturers are involved in product liability lawsuits, they may face financial penalties and negative publicity. Both let manufacturers know they can’t get away with endangering consumers for profit.

Learn More About Product Liability From ConsumerShield

ConsumerShield is dedicated to educating consumers about their legal rights. When you or a family member suffers an injury or disease due to a dangerously defective product, we can connect you with a dedicated lawyer experienced in these cases. Contact us today for a free case evaluation.