A History of Product Liability Law
Product liability law in the US started off with Winterbottom v. Wright, a British case from 1842 dealing with a man who suffered injuries while driving a defective mail coach. At that time, the court decided that negligence was only relevant if the plaintiff and defendant had entered into a contract meant to guarantee certain standards. Because the plaintiff Winterbottom had not signed a contract with the defendant, he lost his case.
This remained the standard in American law until the 1940’s. At this time, public opinion began shifting away from the belief that a company only owed a duty of safety to the public if they signed a contract saying so. More and more juries began voting that this was too harsh, and unfair to the public who rely on product safety. This trend continued into the 1950’s. It takes time for a law to change, so in the meantime juries began looking for any details in a given case that could be construed as a sort of warranty between the plaintiff and defendant.
In 1963, California became the first state to dismiss this need to prove some sort of contract in the case of Greenman v. Yuba Power Products, which established the strict liability rule in cases dealing with defective products. Strict liability is explained in another article on our site. California’s attitude quickly spread across the country.
Today it is generally taken for granted that companies have the obligation to ensure the safety and effectiveness of their products. If you have been injured by a defective product, contact the Green Bay product liability lawyers at Habush Habush & Rottier S.C. ® at (920) 437-0900.
