Georgia product liability lawyer

A product claim comes in one of three shapes: the design was unreasonably dangerous, this particular unit was made wrong, or the warnings and instructions failed to tell you about a real risk. Which shape it is determines the evidence, the experts and the defendant.

Reviewed by Omar A. Cooper, Esq. · Last updated September 3, 2026

Who is usually responsible

More than one party is often liable for a defective product, and finding the second one is frequently what changes the value of a claim:

• the manufacturer;
• a component maker, where the failure was in a part;
• a distributor or retailer, in the circumstances Georgia law allows;
• an installer or servicer whose work introduced the defect.

The evidence that decides these cases

In rough order of how quickly it disappears:

• the product itself — preserved, unrepaired, and not returned to the seller;
• the packaging, manual and warnings as supplied;
• purchase records establishing the chain;
• recall notices, complaint databases and prior incidents involving the same model;
• engineering analysis of the failure mode.

The single most damaging thing a claimant can do is give the product back. Manufacturers and retailers routinely offer a replacement or refund after an injury; accepting it hands over the evidence. Keep the item, keep the box, and photograph everything before anyone collects it.

What can be recovered

• Economic lossMedical treatment already received and reasonably expected in future, lost wages, reduced earning capacity, and property damage.
• Non-economic lossPain, suffering, mental anguish, disfigurement and the loss of the things you used to be able to do.
• Punitive damagesAvailable in the narrower set of Georgia cases involving wilful misconduct or conscious indifference to consequences — drunk driving being the clearest example. They are not part of an ordinary negligence claim.

Every case is different and no outcome can be promised. What we can commit to is that the claim will be documented properly before anyone is asked to put a number on it.

What to do now

If a defective product has just happened, the order of these matters more than people expect:

• Get medical attention, and keep going. Your health comes first, and a documented, continuous treatment record is also what makes the injury provable later. Gaps are the argument insurers make most often.
• Report it. A police report, an incident report or an animal-control report creates a contemporaneous record that cannot be reconstructed afterwards.
• Preserve what will disappear. Photograph the scene, the vehicles or the hazard, and your injuries. Video is usually overwritten within days — a written request to preserve it has to go out early. Georgia crash reports are released through BuyCrash a few business days later.
• Do not give the other side a recorded statement before you have spoken to a lawyer and know the extent of your injuries. You are not required to.
• Get a free review. Call (470) 852-6328 and Omar will tell you honestly whether there is a claim.

Sources: O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33 — injuries to the person: two years · O.C.G.A. § 51-12-33 — apportionment and comparative fault · Georgia crash reports — BuyCrash

Questions people ask about these claims