The legal aspects of production documentation/product liability and the abolition of Crown immunity.

Abstract

The principle of fault liability, enshrined in the Donaghue v Stevenson case, will be revolutionized when the provisions on Product Liability contained in the Consumer Protection Act 1987 comes into force in March 1988. These provisions were passed in order to implement the Directive of the Council of European Communities 25th July 1985 on liability for defective products and the provisions are to be construed accordingly (No 85/374/EEC). Section 2 provides that, 'Where any damage is caused wholly or partly by a defect in a product, every person to whom subsection (2) applies shall be liable for the damage. This section is the crux of the no fault product liability principle.