Product liability is a legal form of responsibility that exists for any manufacturer who sells products to consumers in the state of Colorado. It is a body of law that is intended to hold manufacturers and those who sell their product accountable if the product is unsafe; it was known to be unsafe, and the product sellers and manufacturers didn’t avoid the harm that results. In many cases, this situation involves defective design or features that end up harming consumers using the product under normal circumstances. A baby crib wall that falls when a baby leans against it or traps the child’s head between the rods of the crib wall is a good example. A vegetation trimmer that doesn’t hold its blade in properly due to bad design and the blade flies off and injures the user in the leg would be another.
Key Aspects of CO Law Affecting Product Liability
There are a handful of key pieces of law that make a big difference in a related injury case. The first is the statute of limitations. This puts a cap on how long an injured party can wait before a recovery lawsuit has to be filed. Once past this date, which is generally two years from the date of harm caused by the product, the defendant can request the case be dismissed.
The second is called a statute of repose. This lasts up to 7 years and may be as long as 10 in some circumstances. This limits liability when the defendant takes action to change the product in question, even if the plaintiff hasn’t filed a claim yet.
Damage limitations also exist in CO law, and the court can apply comparative fault to a case versus an entire 100 per cent responsibility on the defendant alone.
Defenses to a Claim
Due to the court being an adversarial system, defendants can also provide motions and arguments proving they are not responsible at all on the face of the case, someone else is responsible for the harm, and/or the plaintiff was responsible for the injury suffered due to using the product differently from what it was intended. These defences can avoid liability or reduce damages if successful. More on this topic can be found at Killian Law (https://www.killianlaw.com/).
Work With Experienced Representation
Given the complexities of product liability in Colorado, as well as the fact that many companies have sizable resources available to them to defend against claims, it’s best to start with a personal injury attorney first before agreeing to anything in terms of injury coverage or settlement. An injured victim could be waiving their rights and potentially recovering by agreeing too early after being hurt. With an experienced approach and robust analysis of the circumstances, a victim can approach the matter with a much better position as well as a better argument for a full recovery versus what a manufacturer may want to write off.
