When defective products cause injuries, manufacturers, distributors, and retailers must be held accountable — whether the product is heavy machinery on a jobsite or a consumer good in your home.
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Descripción General
La ley de responsabilidad por productos hace responsables a fabricantes, distribuidores y minoristas cuando productos defectuosos causan lesiones. A diferencia de la mayoría de los casos de lesiones personales, los reclamos de responsabilidad por productos en California pueden presentarse bajo una teoría de responsabilidad objetiva — lo que significa que no tiene que probar que el demandado fue negligente, solo que el producto era defectuoso y que el defecto causó su lesión.
Defective products come in many forms. Manufacturing defects occur when a product departs from its intended design — a batch of industrial equipment with a faulty weld, a vehicle with a defective brake line. Design defects exist when the product's design itself is unreasonably dangerous, even when manufactured perfectly. Failure-to-warn claims arise when a product lacks adequate instructions or warnings about known risks.
Arns Davis Law representa a individuos y familias dañados por productos de consumo peligrosos, dispositivos médicos defectuosos, partes automotrices defectuosas, sustancias tóxicas y maquinaria insegura. Muchos de nuestros casos de responsabilidad por productos surgen de nuestra práctica de lesiones en la construcción — andamios defectuosos, grúas que funcionan mal, alarmas de retroceso que fallan, prensas operadas sin guardas de seguridad adecuadas. Cuando vemos el mismo producto lesionando a múltiples trabajadores en múltiples sitios de trabajo, investigamos si existe un defecto más amplio.
Product liability cases often require extensive expert analysis — engineering testimony, accident reconstruction, materials testing, medical causation opinions. We work with specialists across these fields to build cases that can withstand the aggressive defense strategies deployed by manufacturers and their insurers.
Recent Results in Injury and Death Cases
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See All Firm Results →What You Should Know
Under California's strict liability doctrine, you can hold a manufacturer liable for injuries caused by a defective product without proving the manufacturer was negligent. You need to show that the product had a defect, that the defect existed when the product left the manufacturer's control, and that the defect caused your injury. This makes product liability claims more accessible than standard negligence cases.
Anyone in the product's chain of distribution can potentially be held liable: the manufacturer, the distributor, the wholesaler, and the retailer. In some cases, a component manufacturer can be liable if the component itself was defective. The key is identifying every party in the chain and determining where the defect originated.
The general statute of limitations is two years from the date of injury. However, if the injury wasn't immediately discoverable — for example, if a toxic substance caused illness that developed over time — the clock may start from the date you discovered or should have discovered the injury. Government entity claims have shorter deadlines (six months for a notice of claim).
If the product was substantially modified after it left the manufacturer's control, and that modification caused or contributed to the injury, the manufacturer may argue it's not liable. However, manufacturers can still be held responsible if the modification was foreseeable or if the original defect would have caused the injury regardless of the modification. These are fact-specific questions that require careful legal analysis.