hard · LSAT Reading Comprehension
The legal principle of strict liability is often applied in product liability cases, where a manufacturer is held responsible for a defective product regardless of fault or intent. Advocates argue that this system provides a crucial safety net for consumers and incentivizes corporations to prioritize safety in the design phase. However, critics contend that strict liability can stifle innovation, particularly in high-risk industries like pharmaceuticals or aerospace, where the threat of massive litigation might discourage the development of life-saving but inherently risky technologies. If every unforeseen complication leads to a crushing legal judgment, firms may choose to exit the market altogether rather than risk bankruptcy. This suggests that the legal system should move back toward a negligence-based standard, which requires a showing that the manufacturer failed to exercise reasonable care, thereby balancing consumer protection with the need for technological progress.
Which one of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the author's argument?
- In the pharmaceutical sector, rates of new drug discovery have proven higher in nations operating under strict liability than in those operating under a negligence standard.
- Manufacturers in negligence-based jurisdictions often spend more money defending product lawsuits than strict-liability firms spend settling comparable claims.
- High-risk industries such as aerospace frequently receive sizable government subsidies that cushion them from the full financial weight of litigation under any legal regime.
- Under a negligence standard, the threat of suit is often far too weak to deter many firms from releasing products with known but hard-to-prove design or build defects.
- Consumer-electronics firms, which face little product litigation, have kept remarkably stable product lines across the past several decades regardless of legal regime.
Sign up free to see the explanation and track your rank →
More LSAT Reading Comprehension practice
- The author's use of the word "demonstrates" most strongly suggests that the author's attit
- Which one of the following most accurately describes the author's attitude toward true cri
- Which one of the following most accurately describes the author's attitude toward urban mi
- Which one of the following most accurately describes the author's attitude toward the pres
- Which one of the following most accurately expresses the main point of the passage?
- Which one of the following most accurately describes the primary purpose of the second par
- Which one of the following most accurately expresses the main point of the passage?
- Which one of the following most accurately describes the primary function of the second pa