Products Liability: A Managerial Perspective

Products Liability - A Managerial Approach is a specially created text and case book meant for the advanced undergraduate student of business and for the MBA student involved in any way in the business of creating, selling, or financing products or in managing these activities. The authors have developed a unique text that combines knowledge gained from many functional areas of business—most notably marketing, management, finance, and business law—and places this knowledge in the context of modern products liability law and theory. The chapters are arranged so that the student will think about products liability from both a theoretical and practical basis. Coverage begins with a discussion of the nature of product defects in the manufacturing, design and marketing of products. The discussion then moves to negligence, breach of warranty, fraud, and the core theories of liability, all leading to the creation of a modern theory of products liability, strict liability in tort. It then concludes by discussing the scope of liability in product cases, defenses available in product cases, and theories of damages in product cases. As a tool for managers, the text contains appendices with practical information, clear examples, and major traditional cases explaining and expanding upon the text materials. The authors have provided relevant case questions, as well as problems that will help the students process the materials in a straightforward manner. While the text contains traditional legal analysis (cases), it is meant to be a practical guide for students of business who are charged with managerial decision-making in fields that include pharmaceuticals, marketing and sales, management, finance and hospital administration. We hope that we have met our objective of proving a hands-on managerial approach to this most relevant topical area in this Second Edition of the text.