Michigan Defective Product Injury Cases: Who Should I Sue?

When use of a defective product results in injury to the user, it’s important to recover all the damages suffered by the injured individual. Usually this is achieved through a product liability lawsuit in which the parties responsible for the defective product are held accountable and made to pay the injured person’s damages. In Michigan, defective product injury cases can be resolved either through settlement outside of court or through trial and court decision.

One of the difficulties with a product liability lawsuit is knowing who to name as the defendant or, in other words, knowing who to sue. Do you sue the store that sold the product? Or do you sue the company that made the product? Actually, Michigan law permits the plaintiff of a product liability suit (the injured person) to name every party involved in the design, manufacture and distribution (known as the “chain of distribution”) of a defective product as defendants. Often this includes many more parties than just the store and manufacturer.

Potential Defendants in a Michigan Defective Product Injury Case

Exactly which parties are liable for injuries caused by a defective product depend on which class of defective product applies to the case:

• Negligent product design = The product was manufactured as design, but a flaw in its design caused it to be dangerous when used as intended
• Negligent product manufacture = The product’s design was safe but it was not manufactured as designed and the manufacturing flaw caused the product to be dangerous
• Negligent failure to warn = The product is one that has inherent dangers that can’t be remedied in the design process and the manufacturer/distributor failed to include adequate warnings about the product’s use or foreseeable misuses.

Depending on which class of product liability suit is being brought, any of the following members can be named as a defendant in Michigan:

Manufacturer — If the product left the manufacturer’s facility with the defect that caused the injury, i.e. the product wasn’t damaged or altered further down the distribution chain, then the manufacturer is most likely among the liable parties. Manufacturers may even be held liable in negligent product design and negligent failure to warn cases if the manufacturer knew or should have known about the design flaw or lack of necessary warning and didn’t take action to remedy the issue.

Retailer — The store (including online stores and merchants) where the defective product was purchased is nearly always named as a defendant because it connects the consumer to the rest of the distribution chain.

Wholesalers & Distributors — These are the companies responsible for getting the product from manufacturers to retailers, and there can be many of these companies involved in the process. If a distributor is also the company that packages the product, they can also be liable in a negligent failure to warn case.

Producers & Design Firms — In a negligent product design case, anyone involved with designing the product can be liable. This includes large product producers who design a product and then contract with a manufacturer to make it, along with independent design firms hired to design a product and even the manufacturer if the company also designed it or participated in the design, such as suggesting changes that would make manufacturing the product less expensive.

Subcontractors & Component Manufacturers — If the product’s defect was introduced by or should have been caught by an outside company hired to assist with design, manufacture or distribution of the product, that company can also be liable. For example, if a quality-control contractor oversaw manufacture of a product with a manufacturing flaw, they could be liable for not catching the flaw. If the product lacked sufficient warnings on the packaging, the packaging design firm could be liable. If the defect was in a component of the product and manufacture of that product was subcontracted out, the manufacturer of the component could be liable ALONG WITH the manufacturer of the overall product.

While it may seem troublesome to identify all the potentially liable parties in a defective product case, it is worthwhile to do so. An injury victim has greater chances of recovering all the damages they are due when there are many defendants. Under Michigan law, defendants can be held liable jointly and severally, which means the cost of the damages gets shared between all defendants. So more defendants means there are more parties to pay the bill and a greater chance of all damages being paid. More defendants also increases the likelihood that at least one defendant will have sufficient resources to pay the damages even if other defendants do not.

Get help identifying defendants in your defective product lawsuit in Michigan

If you or a member of your family was injured by a defective product, the Michigan product liability attorneys at Sachs Waldman, P.C., can help you take action against the companies responsible. You may be entitled to compensation for medical expenses, pain and suffering, or wrongful death. Call our Detroit product liability attorneys toll free at 1-800-638-6722 to schedule a free consultation.