Products Liability in Florida

Theories of Liability

A plaintiff in Florida can sue for injuries caused by a defective product under three primary legal theories. These can be pleaded together in the same lawsuit.

Strict Liability

This is the cornerstone of modern products liability law. It focuses on the condition of the product itself, not the conduct of the manufacturer. If a product is sold in a defective condition that makes it unreasonably dangerous, the seller is liable for the harm it causes, even if they exercised all possible care.

Negligence

This theory focuses on the conduct of the defendant. A manufacturer or seller can be found negligent if they failed to exercise reasonable care in the design, manufacturing, inspection, or marketing of a product, and that failure caused the plaintiff's injuries.

Breach of Warranty

This theory is rooted in contract law and alleges that the product failed to live up to a promise or guarantee.

• Express Warranty: A specific guarantee made by the seller (e.g., "shatterproof glass").
• Implied Warranty: A guarantee implied by law, such as the warranty that a product is "merchantable" (fit for its ordinary purpose).

Types of Product Defects

To succeed under any theory, the plaintiff must prove the product was defective. Florida law recognizes three categories of defects.

Design Defects

The product's original blueprint or design is inherently unsafe, making the entire product line unreasonably dangerous. Florida uses the consumer-expectation test to evaluate design defects: a product is defective if it fails to perform as safely as an ordinary consumer would expect when used in a reasonably foreseeable manner.

In Aubin v. Union Carbide Corp., the Florida Supreme Court rejected the more manufacturer-friendly "risk-utility test" as the primary standard, reaffirming Florida's commitment to the consumer-expectation test to protect consumers.

Manufacturing Defects

An error or flaw occurs during the production process, causing a specific unit or batch to deviate from its intended safe design. The defect exists in the individual product, not the entire line.

Marketing Defects (Failure to Warn)

A product is sold without adequate warnings or instructions about non-obvious dangers associated with its use. A legally adequate warning must inform the consumer of the risk's existence and severity and instruct them on how to avoid it.

Defenses to Products Liability

Defendants have numerous powerful defenses, many of which were strengthened by recent legislative reforms.

Comparative Fault (2023 Reform)

With the passage of HB 837 in 2023, Florida shifted to a modified comparative fault system. A plaintiff found to be more than 50% at fault for their own harm (e.g., through unforeseeable misuse of the product) is completely barred from recovering any damages.

Statute of Limitations & Repose

• Statute of Limitations: A lawsuit must generally be filed within four years of when the harm was or should have been discovered. (Note: The 2023 reforms created ambiguity, potentially shortening the deadline for negligence-based claims to two years).
• Statute of Repose: There is an absolute cutoff of 12 years from the date the product was first sold, regardless of when the injury occurred.

Other Key Defenses

• State-of-the-Art Defense: A product's design is judged by the scientific and technical knowledge available at the time of manufacture, not by later advancements.
• Government Rules Defense: Compliance with mandatory government safety regulations creates a rebuttable presumption that a product is not defective.
• Learned Intermediary Doctrine: For prescription drugs, a manufacturer's duty to warn is generally fulfilled by providing adequate warnings to the prescribing doctor, not the patient.
• Economic Loss Doctrine: Bars recovery in tort if a defective product only damages itself, resulting in purely economic losses (no personal injury or damage to other property).

Damages and Recovery

A successful plaintiff can recover compensatory damages for their losses. This includes economic damages (medical bills, lost wages) and non-economic damages (pain and suffering, mental anguish). In rare cases of egregious conduct, punitive damages may be awarded, but they are subject to very high legal standards and strict statutory caps in Florida.