Products liability doctrine holds a manufacturer, or other party involved in selling a product, strictly liable when an article, placed into the market with knowledge that it is to be used without inspection for defects, proves to have a defect that causes a personal injury. Consumers who are injured because of a fault with a product that the consumers had no ability to protect themselves against may recover against the manufacturer under a theory of products liability.
West Hartford is a unincorporated village in the town of Hartford, Windsor County, Vermont. It is the most rural of Hartford's five villages, situated on the White River and crossed by the Appalachian Trail. Almost half of the village was wiped out by a flood in 1927. Some areas have been developed for residential use, but significant forest, farming and open lands remain. West Hartford features a country store, a post office, a small library and a town park along the White River which is a popular fishing site.