产品警示缺陷若干问题研究——以美国产品责任法为背景

警示缺陷意味着产品警示适当性的缺失。适当的产品警示在内容、语言、设计以及位置方面均需满足一定的要求,而且还应当排除不必要警示的干扰。警示缺陷的认定采用风险-效用的权衡分析与消费者合理期待标准相结合的方法。在警示缺陷诉讼中,过失责任为适当的归责原则;因果关系的证明是追究生产者警示缺陷责任必须具备的前提,生产者可以主张特定的抗辩事由来对抗产品最终用户的权利要求。

Warning Defect——Focusing on American Products Liability Law

If the product warning is inadequate, the product will be found defective in warning. In order to satisfy the requirements of adequacy, a product warning should be reasonable in content, language, design and position etc. Apart from that, unnecessary warnings should be precluded. Warning defect is determined through risk-utility balancing analysis as well as reasonable consumer expectation test. In failure to warn cases, negligence is the applicable liability standard. For the purpose of recovery, the plaintiff must show that the defendant's tortious conduct - the sale of a product with an inadequate warning - caused the injury. Several special defenses are available for defendants to rebut the ultimate product user's claims.