A basic rule of Product Liability is that manufacturers of hazardous products have a duty to warn customers of their products’ potential dangers. If they don’t, they can (and probably will) be sued on the grounds of Warning Defect.

In class, we’ve read warnings for boats (“WARNING! ENGINE EXAUST GAS IS DEADLY!”), floor adhesives, (“DANGER! EXTREMELY FLAMMABLE!”), and tires (“ * TIRE MAY EXPLODE WHEN REINFLATED CAUSING SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH*”).

Warnings children of products’ dangers is particularly difficult because 1) some children can’t read and 2) according to my Product Liability textbook, the Pittsburgh Poison Center of the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh found that “the traditional skull and crossbones symbol…

…tended to attract rather than repel small children to hazardous substances so labeled” because “children associated the symbol with cartoon pirates, adventure, and excitement.”

In response to the above finding, researches conducted a study in which children were shown bottles of mouthwash with various pictorial labels and asked to select the bottle from which they’d least like to drink. None of the kids wanted to drink from the bottle with “Mr. Yuk’s” face on it.

This leads us to the contest…

You’ve been asked to represent the GLOBO-CHEM Corporation, which manufactures a new drain cleaner called “Extra-Strength GLOBO-CHEM Pipe Master Blaster 6000: New Formula.” GLOBO-CHEM wanted to put Mr. Yuk’s face on the bottle, but can’t afford to. In fact, GLOBO-CHEM doesn’t have the money to pay for any pictorial warning at all.

That’s where you come in: GLOBO-CHEM has asked you to create a warning for their new drain cleaner that an average seven-year-old will be able to read and understand.

WHAT DOES YOUR WARNING SAY?

(For the purpose of this contest, assume that an average seven-year-old can read and understand only one-syllable words. Further assume that an average seven-year-old will only read nine words before getting bored.)

The winner of this contest will receive a personalized congratulatory e-mail from my Product Liability professor Bruce Ottley!

The e-mail will be reprinted on LawSchoolBlogger.com the week of April 1st.

Technorati Tags: Product Liability, Warning, Lawyer

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