Negligent design focuses on the manufacturer's conduct in the design process rather than on the product's condition alone. It examines what the manufacturer knew, tested, and considered.
Strict liability design claims focus on the product rather than conduct.
Alternative Names:
Negligent Design Claim, Design Negligence
Why it Matters?
The conduct focus opens discovery into the design process itself, including testing records, design reviews, alternative designs considered and rejected, and internal safety discussions. That documentary record is frequently more damaging than the product analysis, since internal documents acknowledging a hazard and rejecting a fix for cost reasons are the material that produces large verdicts. Managing that discovery is as important as the technical defense.
Frequently Confused with
Related terms
Frequently asked questions
How does negligent design differ from strict liability?
What discovery does it open?
