Maryland Expands the Potential for Manufacturer Liability in Failure to Warn Cases by Adopting an Exception to the Bare Metal Defense

Product manufacturers in Maryland have successfully argued for at least the last 16 years that, in terms of warnings, they are only responsible for products that they themselves have placed in the stream of commerce. In other words, manufacturers have generally avoided potential liability in tort for an alleged failure to warn of hazards associated with dangerous component parts that are used with their products, but that are placed in the stream of commerce by others. This is generally referred to as the “bare metal defense.” On December 18, 2015, however, the scope of this defense changed radically.

Please click here to read the full Alert.