Products Liability — Domestic Developments

In recent years much attention has been paid to proposals reform the law on manufacturers' liability for defective oducts. In particular, the so‐called ‘Brussels Directive’, r the approximation of the laws of the member states of e European Economic Community relating to product bility, has excited great controversy. As early as 1976 e first formal proposals were made for a new strict bility regime and revised proposals were submitted to e Council of Ministers on 1st October 1979. The net sult so far has been nil, as member states have disagreed er certain key proposals in the Directive, and the ommunity Consumer Protection policy has floundered the general lack of political impetus generated by ccessive budgetary and agricultural crisis. Yet almost rreptitiously on the domestic front there have been portant developments which may well have the effect of rendering some parts of the E.E.C. proposals obsolete before they reach the statute book.