Regulation of products

This overview is a guide to the content within the Regulatory (EU Law) subtopic with links to the appropriate materials. This subtopic examines EU regulations and directives which regulate products including the safety and liability, and ecodesign requirements. This subtopic also covers specific areas, such as construction products, cosmetic products, conflict minerals, machinery and forest-derived products.

General product liability and safety regulations

The EU Product Liability Directive

Directive 85/374/EEC of 25 July 1985, on the approximation of the laws, regulations and administrative provisions of the Member States concerning liability for defective products, also known as the EU Product Liability Directive (EU PLD), imposes a strict liability on producers of defective products marketed in the EEA.

Practice Note: The EU Product Liability Directive considers what constitutes a defective product under the EU PLD, who in the supply chain may be liable, their degree of liability and any contributory negligence issues, the type of damages that may be awarded and the various defences available to a producer. It considers significant cases of the Court of Justice, looks at reports on the efficacy of the EU PLD and plans for future

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Latest EU Law News

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The European Parliament's Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON) adopted an opinion on 15 July 2025, proposing significant amendments to EU corporate sustainability reporting requirements. The opinion recommends increasing the reporting threshold to companies with over 5,000 employees and €450m in net worldwide turnover, replacing the current 1,000-employee threshold. For value chain reporting, companies would be prevented from seeking information from business partners below these thresholds, thereby significantly reducing reporting obligations.

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