Professor Co-Authors Revised Products Liability Treatise

Mary J. Davis, University of Kentucky Stites & Harbison Professor of Law, recently published the fourth edition of her products liability treatise with co-author Professor David Owen from the University of South Carolina School of Law. The Law of Products Liability was published by Thomson Reuters Publishing in August 2014.

Professors Davis and Owen decided on major changes to the 4th edition of this treatise. Work began in 2010 and the treatise was expanded from three volumes to four volumes. Professor Davis says that while the treatise is “intended to be a comprehensive explanation of the law of products liability primarily directed at practicing lawyers,” she hopes students will find it useful as well.

“It is the only Products Liability treatise of its kind—other works are more descriptive and encyclopedic in nature,” says Professor Davis. “We explain the basic structure of the subject, laying out the doctrine and identifying areas of complexity. We also provide clarification on some of the murkier areas, or at least we hope we do.”

Professor Davis says products liability has changed dramatically over the past twenty years. “We provide comprehensive explanation of the doctrine in a very usable format,” says Davis. “We try to minimize complexity for the reader while giving insight into how the unsettled subject areas may evolve. In particular, the law of federal regulation in this area has become very complex and we tackle that subject very effectively, I think.”

Professors Davis and Owen hope product liability practitioners, as well as law students, will find this updated edition to the treatise valuable.