A product liability claim is a lawsuit brought against the manufacturers, distributors, and sellers of a defective product. When a consumer item fails to perform safely and someone is injured as a result, the injured person can pursue a claim against everyone in the chain of distribution. Under the New Jersey Product Liability Act, N.J.S.A. 2A:58C-1 et seq., all responsible parties can be held strictly liable, regardless of whether they acted negligently.

These claims can arise from any item released to the public: a defective vehicle or auto part, a child’s toy, a household appliance, a power tool, workplace equipment, a medical device, or a pharmaceutical drug. Liability may apply when a product was defectively designed, improperly manufactured, or released without adequate warnings.

In a product liability case, you can pursue a claim against anyone in the chain of distribution: the manufacturer that designed or built the product, the supplier that provided its components, the distributor that moved it to market, and the retailer that sold it to you. Each party that played a role in bringing a defective product to consumers may share responsibility for the harm it caused.

New Jersey follows a modified joint and several liability framework under the New Jersey Joint Tortfeasors Contribution Law, N.J.S.A. 2A:53A-1 et seq. This means that when multiple defendants are found liable, a plaintiff may be able to recover a greater share of damages from those defendants with the financial resources to pay, even if other responsible parties cannot cover their portion.

Because identifying and pursuing all liable parties requires a thorough investigation of how the product was made, distributed, and sold, it is important to work with an experienced New Jersey Product Liability attorney to build a successful claim.

Product liability claims require the injured person to establish several key elements.

• First, the product must have had a defect, whether in its design, its manufacturing, or its warnings.
• Second, that defect must have directly caused the injury and the damages that followed. The fact that an injury occurred while using a product is not enough on its own. The defect itself must be the reason the injury happened.
• Third, the product must have been used in an intended or reasonably foreseeable way at the time of the injury. A claim is unlikely to succeed if the product was being misused in a way the manufacturer could not reasonably have anticipated.
• Finally, the injured person must have sustained actual, quantifiable harm. This includes physical injuries, medical expenses, lost income, and other documented losses.

Building a strong product liability case requires evidence, expert analysis, and a clear connection between the defect and the harm caused. An experienced New Jersey Product Liability attorney will work to build the claim immediately.

Time is a critical factor in any product liability case. In New Jersey, the statute of limitations for most personal injury claims, including those involving defective products, is two years from the date of injury. If a claim is not filed within that window, a court will likely dismiss it, regardless of how strong the underlying case may be.

In some situations, the discovery rule may apply. Under this principle, the two-year clock does not begin to run until the injured person discovers, or reasonably should have discovered, that a product defect caused their injury. This can be relevant in cases involving pharmaceutical drugs or medical devices, where the connection between the product and the harm may not be immediately apparent.

Every case is different, and the value of a product liability claim depends on the specific facts, the severity of the injuries, and the long-term impact on the injured person’s life. An experienced New Jersey Product Liability attorney can help evaluate the full scope of damages available to you.

New Jersey law recognizes two primary categories of compensable damages.

• Economic damages cover the financial losses caused by the injury. These include past and future medical expenses, rehabilitation costs, lost wages, loss of earning capacity, and any other out-of-pocket costs directly tied to the defective product. Because severe injuries can require years of ongoing care or prevent someone from returning to work, economic damages in significant cases can reach substantial amounts.
• Non-economic damages address the human toll of the injury. This includes physical pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life, and loss of consortium for a spouse or family member. New Jersey does not cap compensatory damages, which means these losses can be fully accounted for in a claim.

In cases where a manufacturer, distributor, or seller acted with reckless disregard for consumer safety, a court may also award punitive damages. Under New Jersey law, punitive damages are capped at $350,000 or five times the compensatory award, whichever is greater.