Add Checkbox Group Legal Illinois Product Liability Forms For Free

Unlike negligence cases where plaintiffs must demonstrate the defendant's breach of duty, strict liability places the burden of proof on defendants to show that the product was not defective or unreasonably dangerous. This shift in burden can significantly impact the outcomes of product liability litigation.

As explained in the Illinois Pattern Jury Instructions, strict liability “is imposed without regard to traditional questions of privity, fault, or the user's ordinary negligence.” In other words, strict liability does not depend on actual negligence or intent.

To recover in strict product liability, a plaintiff must plead and prove that the injury or damage resulted from a condition of the product manufactured or sold by the defendant, that the condition was an unreasonably dangerous one, and that the condition existed at the time the product left the manufacturer's control.

The elements of a negligence cause of action against a product manufacturer or seller arising out of a defective product are the same as for most any other type of negligence action: duty, breach of duty, causation and damage. The duty, whether in design, manufacturing, or warning, is that of reasonable care.

A manufacturer or distributor is not necessarily responsible if a consumer is injured by a product. The law simply states corporations are strictly liable for injuries that occur because of dangerous or defective products they have put into the stream of commerce.

A manufacturer's duty to warn may be discharged when the person using or controlling the use of the product is or should be aware of the dangers associated with it. This is the sophisticated user and/or sophisticated intermediary defense.

(3) “product liability action” means any action based on any theory or doctrine brought against the seller of a product on account of personal injury, (including illness, disease, disability and death) or property, economic or other damage allegedly caused by or resulting from the manufacture, construction, preparation ...

In general, an injured party must prove that the product was defective or dangerous at the time when it left the possession or control of the defendant. The seller is not liable for injuries caused by parties' mishandling or other actions that make the product harmful at the time it was consumed by the purchaser.

(3) “product liability action” means any action based on any theory or doctrine brought against the seller of a product on account of personal injury, (including illness, disease, disability and death) or property, economic or other damage allegedly caused by or resulting from the manufacture, construction, preparation ...