Essentials of Products Liability (On Demand Seminar)

A pre-recorded streaming video replay of the November 2021 webcast, Essentials of Products Liability.

Many have said that the Virginia Supreme Court has issued some blockbuster products opinions in recent years. But have any blocks really been busted? Has the law changed, or just perceptions? What do the cases really mean?

In this program, experienced litigator Chris Spencer surveys the legal landscape: what’s changed, what hasn’t, and what it all means for practitioners on both sides of the “v.”

The program covers:

• Five Big Cases
  • Evans
  • Holiday Motors
  • Norris
  • Hyundai
  • Benedict
• Duties
  • What are they really?
  • Who had what duties and who didn’t—on both sides?
• Breach
  • What is “negligence” for a product defendant?
  • What is a “breach of warranty”?
  • What is a “safer alternative design”?
  • What is “negligence” for a plaintiff?
  • What is “misuse” really?
• Proof
  • Government standards
  • Industry standards
  • Consumer expectations
• Tools
  • Res Ipsa/Consumer expectations
  • Experts
  • The Internet
  • Company documents and witnesses
  • Other incidents, other complaints
    

ABOUT THE SPEAKER

Chris Spencer, Spencer LLP / Richmond

Products liability has been a focus of Chris Spencer’s practice for nearly 40 years. He has represented a variety of product designers, manufacturers, and sellers, and has tried products cases to verdict in more than 15 states and one territory. He has worked with witnesses and presented to companies in Japan, Korea, Germany, the UK, the US, and Canada. He has studied and put to practical use the decisions of the Virginia Supreme Court, the Fourth Circuit, and the federal district courts on Virginia’s products liability law.