TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................. 1438

II. THE SAFETY BENEFIT OF PRODUCT LIABILITY .................................................... 1443

A. Incentives To Reduce Product Risk Generated by Market Forces .......................... 1443

B. Regulation of Product Risk ......................................................................................... 1450

C. Risk Reduction Accomplished by Product Liability ................................................ 1453

III. THE PRICE-SIGNALING BENEFIT OF PRODUCT LIABILITY ................................. 1459

A. Price-Signaling and Consumer Information ............................................................. 1459

B. Price-Signaling and First-Party Insurance ............................................................... 1461

IV. THE COMPENSATION BENEFIT OF PRODUCT LIABILITY ..................................... 1462

A. Compensation Accomplished by Insurance ............................................................... 1462

B. Compensation Accomplished by Product Liability ................................................... 1463

C. The Social Desirability of the Compensation Accomplished

by Product Liability .................................................................................................... 1465

V. THE COSTS OF PRODUCT LIABILITY ......................................................................... 1469

A. Legal Expenses ............................................................................................................. 1469

B. Price Distortions ......................................................................................................... 1470

VI. IS PRODUCT LIABILITY SOCIALLY WORTHWHILE GIVEN

ITS BENEFITS AND COSTS? .......................................................................................... 1472

A. Product Liability for Widely Sold Products ............................................................. 1472

B. Product Liability for Products That Are Not Widely Sold ...................................... 1476

VII. THE PREVAILING SOCIAL ENDORSEMENT OF PRODUCT LIABILITY ................. 1476

A. Judicial Opinions......................................................................................................... 1476

B. Academic Writing ........................................................................................................ 1483

C. Public Commentary ..................................................................................................... 1487

VIII. THE CONTRAST BETWEEN PRODUCT LIABILITY AND

LIABILITY TO STRANGERS .......................................................................................... 1490

IX. CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................... 1491

来源 《HARVARD LAW REVIEW VOLUME》• APRIL 2010 • NUMBER 6

详情进入http://www.harvardlawreview.org/issues/123/april10/Article_6968.php