Oklahoma City Product Liability Lawyer

Most personal injury firms list product liability on their website. Very few have actually taken a manufacturer to trial over a dangerous product. We have.

Our founding attorney, Tye Smith, managed the Oklahoma City office of the largest personal injury firm in Oklahoma for nearly 30 years before starting 222 Injury Lawyers with his son Sheldon. During that time, he litigated product liability cases against major manufacturers — and won. He’s forced companies to change how they design and build their products. Not with demand letters. With verdicts.

When a defective product injures someone, the manufacturer has corporate lawyers and insurance adjusters protecting the bottom line. You need someone on your side who isn’t intimidated by that. That’s what we do. We protect the little guy against companies that put profits ahead of safety.

Call now for a free consultation. We don’t get paid unless you do.

Why Choose 222 Injury Lawyers for Your Oklahoma City Product Liability Case?

Product liability cases are different from standard personal injury claims. They involve corporate defendants with in-house legal departments, insurance companies working to pay as little as possible, and technical evidence that demands engineering analysis. You need an attorney who has been through this before — and delivered results.

Tye Smith has tried product liability cases across Oklahoma. He’s deposed engineers, fought through corporate discovery, and taken these cases through verdict. Through his product liability litigation, he has persuaded major manufacturers to redesign dangerous products. Our father-son team has recovered over $80 million in combined verdicts and settlements across all practice areas.

Here’s what working with us looks like:

We investigate the product, not just the injury.

We bring in product safety experts and engineers to examine the failed product, review its design specifications, analyze maintenance records, and determine exactly how and why it malfunctioned. Preserving this evidence early is critical — which is why the sooner you call, the better.

We identify every liable party.

Under Oklahoma law, the manufacturer, component makers, distributors, and in some cases the retailer can all share liability for a defective product. We trace responsibility through the entire supply chain to maximize what you recover.

We prepare every case for trial.

Insurance companies know which lawyers will actually put a case in front of a jury. We are real trial attorneys, and insurers formulate their settlement offers accordingly. When a fair number isn’t offered, we go to the courtroom.

“Tye’s compassion and knowledge were exactly what we needed during a challenging time. He provided clear guidance and heartfelt support. I’m grateful to have had Tye by our side.” — Tyson Hume

How Oklahoma Product Liability Law Works

Oklahoma follows strict liability for defective product cases. Under Oklahoma Uniform Jury Instruction (OUJI) No. 12.2, a product is defective when it is not reasonably fit for the ordinary purposes for which it was intended or could reasonably be expected to be used.

Here’s what strict liability means for your case: you do not need to prove the manufacturer was careless or negligent. You need to establish three things:

1. The product was defective.
2. The defect made it unreasonably dangerous.
3. The defect directly caused your injury.

In a negligence case, you’d have to show the manufacturer did something wrong. In a strict liability product case, you only need to show the product was flawed and that flaw injured you. Oklahoma courts have also held that anyone who uses, consumes, or could reasonably be affected by the product can bring a claim — you don’t have to be the person who purchased it.

Types of Product Defects Recognized in Oklahoma

Under OUJI No. 12.2, a product defect can arise from design, manufacturing, packaging, labeling, or warnings while the product was under the defendant’s control.

Design Defects

A design defect is an inherent flaw in the product’s original plans that makes every unit manufactured under that design unreasonably dangerous — even when built exactly as intended. Design defect cases frequently lead to product recalls because the problem affects every unit produced.

Example: A pressure cooker designed without an adequate locking mechanism that allows the lid to open under pressure during normal cooking use.

Manufacturing Defects

A manufacturing defect occurs when an error during production, assembly, or quality control makes a specific product or batch dangerous — even though the original design was safe. Contaminated materials, faulty welds, substandard components, or assembly errors are common causes.

Example: A batch of tires produced with a weakened sidewall compound that causes blowouts under standard driving conditions.

Warning and Marketing Defects

A warning defect — sometimes called a failure to warn or marketing defect — occurs when the manufacturer does not provide adequate instructions for safe use or does not disclose known risks.

Under OUJI No. 12.5, if a product poses risks during normal or reasonably anticipated use that wouldn’t be apparent to an ordinary user, the manufacturer must provide clear warnings. When those warnings are absent, incomplete, or inadequately communicated, the manufacturer is liable for injuries that follow.

Example: Industrial cleaning chemicals with inadequate labeling about the respiratory risks of use in confined spaces.

Common Product Liability Cases in Oklahoma City

Oklahoma City’s position as a hub for energy production, transportation, agriculture, and manufacturing means workers and consumers regularly encounter products that cause serious harm when they fail.

Oilfield and Industrial Equipment Failures

Oklahoma ranks among the top oil-producing states in the nation, with roughly 200 active drilling rigs operating at any given time. Defective valves, tongs, derricks, blowout preventers, pressure vessels, and safety equipment cause explosions, amputations, severe burns, crush injuries, and deaths.

If defective equipment caused your oilfield injury, you likely have a product liability claim against the equipment manufacturer on top of any workers’ compensation benefits from your employer. The product liability claim is a separate third-party action — and it recovers what workers’ comp cannot: full lost wages (not just 70%), pain and suffering, and potentially punitive damages. You can pursue both claims at the same time. More detail on this below.

Defective Vehicles and Auto Parts

Faulty brakes, defective tires, malfunctioning airbags, failed steering systems, and defective seatbelts cause or worsen car accidents and commercial vehicle accidents on I-35, I-40, I-44, and surface streets across the Oklahoma City metro. When a vehicle component fails, the parts manufacturer or vehicle maker may owe compensation beyond what the at-fault driver’s insurance covers.

Consumer Products

Household appliances that overheat or catch fire. Power tools that malfunction. Children’s products with detachable parts that become choking hazards. Recalled electronics with defective lithium-ion batteries. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission issued over 420 recall announcements in 2025 — the highest total in nearly two decades — covering more than 83 million hazardous units. Hundreds of injuries and dozens of deaths were linked to those products.

Medical Devices and Pharmaceuticals

Defective hip and knee implants, surgical mesh, pacemakers, insulin pumps, and prescription medications with undisclosed side effects. Pharmaceutical and medical device cases often become class actions or multidistrict litigation, but individual claims may recover more depending on the facts. We can advise which path makes sense for your situation.

Farm and Agricultural Equipment

Defective tractors, combines, PTO shafts, grain augers, and hydraulic systems cause devastating injuries in agricultural communities across central and western Oklahoma. When farm equipment fails during normal use, the manufacturer bears liability.

Construction Equipment and Tools

Defective scaffolding, nail guns, saws, ladders, cranes, and fall protection equipment injure Oklahoma City construction workers regularly. When equipment failure causes a workplace injury, the manufacturer can be held liable through a product liability claim — even when workers’ compensation immunizes the employer.

Who Can Be Held Liable for a Defective Product?

Oklahoma law holds every party in a product’s chain of distribution potentially accountable for injuries caused by defective products:

• Product manufacturers — the company that designed and/or assembled the product
• Component part manufacturers — companies that built individual parts integrated into the final product
• Distributors and wholesalers — companies that moved the product from manufacturer to market
• Retailers — brick-and-mortar or online sellers who placed the product in your hands

Under Oklahoma’s product liability statutes, sellers are generally protected from liability for defects they didn’t create — unless the seller controlled the product’s design, testing, manufacturing, packaging, or labeling, or unless the manufacturer can’t otherwise be held accountable. We investigate the full supply chain so that every responsible party is identified and pursued.

Compensation Available in Oklahoma Product Liability Cases

A successful product liability claim in Oklahoma can recover:

Economic damages — medical bills (emergency care, surgery, hospitalization, rehabilitation, ongoing treatment), lost wages, diminished future earning capacity, out-of-pocket expenses, and property damage.

Non-economic damages — physical pain, emotional distress, mental anguish, disfigurement, permanent disability, loss of enjoyment of life, and loss of companionship.

Punitive damages — when the manufacturer acted with reckless disregard for consumer safety or intentional misconduct, Oklahoma courts can award additional damages to punish the defendant and deter similar conduct.

Wrongful death damages — if a defective product killed someone you love, surviving family members can pursue a wrongful death claim for funeral costs, loss of financial support, loss of companionship, and other damages under Oklahoma law.

Oklahoma’s 2025 Damage Caps and What They Mean for Product Liability Claims

As of September 1, 2025, Oklahoma law (SB 453) caps noneconomic damages for physical pain and suffering at $500,000 in most personal injury cases. However, the cap lifts entirely if a jury finds any of the following:

• The injury is severe and permanent
• The defendant acted with recklessness
• The defendant was grossly negligent
• The defendant acted with fraud or intentional malice

Most catastrophic product liability cases — where a manufacturer knowingly shipped a dangerous product, ignored safety testing failures, concealed defect data, or delayed issuing recalls — meet the threshold for the recklessness or gross negligence exception. Having a trial attorney who knows how to establish reckless conduct is what separates a capped recovery from an uncapped one.

Mental injury damages are separately capped at $1,000,000.

Oklahoma’s Statute of Limitations for Product Liability

Under Title 12, §95 of the Oklahoma Statutes, you have two years from the date of injury to file a product liability lawsuit. If you miss this deadline, the court will dismiss your case regardless of how strong the evidence is.

Two years goes faster than most people expect. Product liability cases require preserving the defective product, retaining expert witnesses, conducting engineering analysis, identifying every liable party, and building a case strong enough to survive corporate defense teams. Every week you wait is a week the evidence degrades.

Call now. Time and evidence are working against you.

Comparative Negligence in Oklahoma Product Liability Cases

Oklahoma’s comparative negligence statute (§23-13) allows you to recover damages even if you share some fault — as long as your negligence does not exceed the manufacturer’s.

Here’s how it works:

• You were 20% at fault, manufacturer was 80% at fault → you recover 80% of total damages.
• You were 50% at fault → you can still recover 50%.
• You were more than 50% at fault → no recovery.

Manufacturers routinely argue the consumer misused the product or ignored warnings. This is a default defense strategy. An experienced product liability attorney anticipates this argument and builds evidence proving the product was used within its intended or reasonably foreseeable purpose.

FAQs About Product Liability in Oklahoma City

Can I file a product liability claim if I was hurt at work?

Yes — and this may be the most underused legal strategy in Oklahoma. Workers’ compensation covers medical expenses and roughly 70% of lost wages, but it does not pay for pain and suffering and it does not allow full wage recovery. A product liability claim against the equipment manufacturer is a separate third-party claim that runs alongside your workers’ comp case. It can recover everything workers’ comp leaves on the table: full lost wages, pain and suffering, and potentially punitive damages.

Do I have to prove the manufacturer was negligent?

No. Oklahoma applies strict liability to defective products. You must prove the product was defective and unreasonably dangerous, and that the defect caused your injury. You do not need to prove the manufacturer was careless — only that the product was flawed.

What if the product has been recalled?

A recall does not prevent you from filing a lawsuit. In many cases, it actually strengthens your claim because it demonstrates the manufacturer acknowledged the product was dangerous. You may be able to file an individual suit or join existing litigation. We can evaluate which approach is likely to recover more for your circumstances.

Can I sue if I didn’t buy the product?

Yes. Under Oklahoma product liability law, anyone who uses, consumes, or could reasonably be expected to be affected by a defective product can pursue a claim. This covers employees using employer-provided equipment, family members using a product someone else purchased, and bystanders injured by a product they never touched.

Does an expired warranty bar my product liability claim?

No. Product liability is based on defect, not contract. If the product was unreasonably dangerous due to a design, manufacturing, or warning flaw, the manufacturer can be held liable regardless of warranty status. Insurance companies frequently cite warranty expiration as grounds to deny claims. Don’t accept that without consulting an attorney.

How much does it cost to hire a product liability lawyer?

We work on a contingency fee basis — you pay nothing upfront and owe nothing unless we recover compensation for you. We advance all costs, including expert witness fees and engineering analysis. There is zero financial risk to you.

How long does a product liability case take?

The timeline depends on case complexity, the number of defendants, and whether the case settles or goes to trial. Straightforward cases involving recalled products with clear defects may resolve within months. Complex multi-defendant cases or class actions can take one to three years. We keep you informed every step of the way.

Steps to Take After a Defective Product Injury

Product liability evidence deteriorates quickly. Manufacturers recall and collect dangerous units. Employers repair or replace broken equipment. Adjusters push for fast settlements before anyone examines the evidence. Protect yourself by acting immediately:

1. Seek medical treatment. Your health is the priority. Medical records also become foundational evidence documenting what happened and how badly you were hurt.

2. Preserve the product. Do not discard it, return it, repair it, or allow anyone to alter it. Keep all packaging, manuals, receipts, and warranty documents. Photograph the product and the scene thoroughly.

3. Document everything. Write down what happened while details are fresh — date, time, location, what you were doing, and exactly how the product failed. Collect contact information from witnesses.

4. Do not sign anything. The manufacturer or its insurer may contact you quickly. Do not sign releases, provide recorded statements, or accept settlement offers without speaking to an attorney. You could be waiving rights worth far more than what’s on the table.

5. Call a product liability attorney. The earlier we can inspect the product, preserve evidence, and begin investigating, the stronger your case becomes.

Talk to an Oklahoma City Product Liability Attorney Today

If a defective product injured you or a family member in the Oklahoma City area, you have the right to hold the manufacturer accountable. At 222 Injury Lawyers, we bring the trial experience, technical resources, and willingness to fight that these cases demand.

We serve clients from our offices in Oklahoma City, Tulsa, and Sapulpa, and we handle product liability cases across the state.

Call for a FREE consultation. We don’t get paid until you do.