When you turn on an appliance, drive your car, or give your child a toy, you expect it to be safe. When a defective product causes a catastrophic injury instead, California law gives you something most injury victims do not have: you do not have to prove the manufacturer was careless, only that the product was defective and that the defect caused your injury.
That distinction, called strict liability, is the single most valuable advantage in a product liability case, and it is exactly what a manufacturer’s legal team hopes you never learn.
California’s Strict Liability Rule
Under California law, a manufacturer, distributor, or retailer can be held strictly liable for a defective product, meaning liability does not depend on proving negligence.[1] You still need to prove the product was defective, that you were using it as intended (or in a reasonably foreseeable way), and that the defect caused your injury, but you do not need to reconstruct what went wrong on a factory floor or inside a corporate safety review. This is a fundamentally different, and generally easier, burden than an ordinary negligence claim.
Three Types of Product Defects
- Design Defects: the product was unsafe as designed, before it was ever manufactured.
- Manufacturing Defects: an error in the production process made an otherwise safe design dangerous.
- Marketing Defects (Failure to Warn): improper labeling or insufficient instructions and warnings made a product hazardous even though the design and manufacturing were sound.
Who Can Be Held Liable
Strict liability applies to nearly everyone in the chain of commerce: the designer, the manufacturer, the maker of a defective component, the party who assembled or installed the product, the distributor, and the retailer who sold it. Naming every party in that chain matters because each may carry separate insurance, directly affecting the total compensation available to you, the same way it does in any catastrophic injury case with more than one liable party.
Types of Product Liability Cases We Handle
Defective Medical Devices
Implants, surgical instruments, and diagnostic equipment that fail or were defectively designed can cause injuries on top of whatever condition they were meant to treat. These cases often involve both the device manufacturer and, separately, a possible medical malpractice claim against the provider who used it.
Dangerous Pharmaceuticals
A drug that was inadequately tested, improperly manufactured, or sold without an adequate warning about its risks can support a claim against the pharmaceutical company, separate from any claim against a prescribing physician.
Defective Vehicle Parts
Brake failures, airbag malfunctions, tire blowouts, and seatbelt defects can cause or worsen a crash independent of driver error. These claims frequently arise alongside a vehicle accident claim and can open up an entirely separate source of recovery, particularly in crashes that cause a traumatic brain injury or a spinal cord injury.
Faulty Consumer Products
Household appliances, children’s products, and everyday consumer goods that malfunction or were designed without adequate safeguards can cause burns, electrocution, choking, or other serious injury.
Industrial and Workplace Equipment Failures
Defective machinery, power tools, and industrial equipment cause a significant share of workplace and construction injuries, and a product liability claim against the equipment manufacturer can proceed alongside, or instead of, a workers’ compensation claim.
Compensation for a Product Liability Claim
- Medical bills, past and future
- Lost income and reduced future earning capacity
- Property damage caused by the defective product
- Pain and suffering, scarring, and disfigurement
- Punitive damages, when clear and convincing evidence shows the manufacturer knew of the danger and disregarded it[2]
How Haffner Law Builds Your Product Liability Case
We preserve the physical product itself as evidence whenever possible, since the defect is often the entire case, and work with engineers and product-safety experts who can identify exactly how and why it failed. We also pull recall notices, prior complaint records, and internal safety communications where available, since a pattern of known risk is powerful evidence a manufacturer cannot easily explain away.
Because strict liability removes the burden of proving corporate negligence, we focus our investigation on the product and the injury it caused, not on reconstructing a company’s internal decision-making, which lets us build your case faster and with less dependence on evidence the manufacturer controls.
California Product Liability Law FAQs
How long do I have to file a product liability claim in California?
Generally two years from the date of the injury, under Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1.[3] If you did not discover the defect right away, California’s discovery rule may extend that deadline, but you should not assume it applies without confirming your specific facts with an attorney.
Do I have to prove the manufacturer was negligent?
No. California allows most product liability claims to proceed under strict liability, which means you prove the product was defective and that the defect caused your injury, not that the manufacturer was careless.[1] A negligence claim remains available as well and can sometimes support additional damages, but it is not required to win.
What if I wasn't using the product exactly as instructed?
You can generally still recover if you were using the product in a way that was reasonably foreseeable, even if it was not the single intended use. Manufacturers are expected to anticipate how people actually use their products, not just the narrowest possible use case.
Can I sue if the product was recalled after my injury?
Yes. A recall is not a substitute for compensation, and it does not erase the manufacturer’s liability for injuries that already occurred. A recall notice can also become useful evidence that the manufacturer knew, or should have known, about the defect.
What if multiple companies were involved in making the product?
Liability can extend to every party in the chain of commerce, from the original designer to the retailer who sold it to you. We investigate the full supply chain rather than assuming the most visible name on the box is the only responsible party.
What is my product liability case worth?
There is no fixed number. Value depends on the severity of your injury, whether the manufacturer knew of the defect in advance, and how many other people were affected by the same product. We work with product-safety experts and economists to build a full, evidence-based valuation before discussing settlement.
Speak With a California Product Liability Lawyer
Strict liability is the advantage most injured consumers never learn they have.
Haffner Law puts it to work for you, tracing liability through every party in the chain of commerce, from designer to retailer. Call (213) 514-5681 for a free case evaluation, or reach our attorneys through our California locations.
