LithuaniaLietuvos Respublikos civilinio kodekso šeštosios knygos III dalies XXII skyriaus ketvirtojo skirsnio ir priedo pakeitimo įstatymas Nr. XV-1080 (Act No. XV-1080 amending the Civil Code), Articles 6.292 to 6.300 as Replaced from 9 December 2026 (Directive (EU) 2024/2853)
A product liability rule binding private bodies.
- Private right of action
- Yes
- Instrument type
- an act of a legislature
As of .
What it requires
- These rules are enacted but do not apply yet: they apply from , and the Civil Code rules in force until keep governing products placed on the market or put into use before then (Art. 3 of Act No. XV-1080).
- If you develop or make a product, software included, or present yourself as its manufacturer by putting your name, trade mark or another distinguishing sign on it, you answer as its manufacturer for damage a defect in it causes (Arts. 6.292(1) and 6.293(1) point 1 and (2)).
- Keep supplying the software updates and upgrades needed to keep the product safe while it is within your control: you keep control if you integrate or supply a component or can supply updates or upgrades yourself or through a third party, and a defect caused by software, by an update or upgrade, or by a missing update needed for safety is not excused because it arose after you placed the product on the market (Arts. 6.292(3) and 6.298(1) point 1).
- Treat safety-relevant cybersecurity requirements and any recall or other corrective action as part of what decides whether your product is defective (Art. 6.294(1) points 6 and 7).
- Allow for what the product learns or acquires after it is placed on the market, because the effect of that ability is weighed in deciding whether it is defective (Art. 6.294(1) point 3).
- Keep evidence you could produce if a court orders you to disclose it: failing to disclose relevant evidence the claimant requested presumes the product defective (Art. 6.297(1) point 1).
- Meet the product-safety requirements that apply to your product: failing a requirement that protects against the risk of the harm suffered presumes it defective (Art. 6.297(1) point 2).
- If you are outside the EU, your importer or authorized representative established in the EU answers for the product in your place, and where there is neither, the fulfilment service provider answers (Art. 6.292(4)).
- If you distribute a product, or run an online platform that lets consumers conclude distance contracts with traders where the conditions of Article 6(3) of Regulation (EU) 2022/2065 are met, name the manufacturer, importer, authorized representative, fulfilment service provider or your own supplier within a month of the injured person's request, or you answer for the damage (Art. 6.292(5)).
- If you substantially modify a product outside the manufacturer's control and then place it on the market or put it into use, you answer as its manufacturer (Art. 6.292(2)).
- If you build a software component into a product, you have no recourse against the maker of a defective software component that was a micro or small enterprise when it placed the component on the market, where you waived recourse in your contract with it (Art. 6.296(2)).
- Free and open-source software developed or supplied outside commercial activity is outside these rules (Art. 6.299(2)).
- A claim must be brought within three years of the day the injured person learned, or should have learned, of the damage, the defect and who the liable operator is, and the right to sue is extinguished ten years after the product was placed on the market or put into use, or 25 years where a court finds that a later-revealed injury prevented suit within ten (Art. 6.300).
These lines are LexLint's reading of the law's text, as of .
What this law does
Act No. XV-1080 of replaces the fourth section of chapter XXII of part III of book six of the Civil Code, which covers liability for damage caused by products of inadequate quality. The Register of Legal Acts published the Act on . The President of the Republic promulgated the Act. The Act enters into force on . Products placed on the market or put into use before stay under the Civil Code rules that applied until .
Article 2 of the Act adds Directive (EU) 2024/2853, which repeals Council Directive 85/374/EEC, as point 11 of the Civil Code annex. Article 6.292(1) makes an economic operator liable to compensate damage caused by a product of inadequate quality. Article 6.293(2) defines a product as a movable thing, including a thing that is part of another movable or immovable thing or is connected with it.
Article 6.293(2) also counts electricity, a digital manufacturing file, a raw material and software as a product. Article 6.299(2) excludes damage caused by free and open-source software developed or supplied outside commercial activity. Article 6.292(2) makes the manufacturer of a product or component liable also for damage caused by a component integrated into or connected with a product under the manufacturer's control.
Article 6.292(2) makes a person who substantially modifies a product outside the manufacturer's control and places it on the market or puts it into use liable as a manufacturer. Article 6.292(3) point 1 treats a manufacturer as in control of a product when it integrates a component into it, connects a component to it or supplies a component, including software updates or upgrades.
Article 6.292(3) point 2 also treats a manufacturer as in control when it is able to supply software updates or upgrades itself or through a third party. Article 6.292(4) makes the importer or authorized representative liable where the manufacturer is established outside the European Union. Article 6.292(4) makes the fulfilment service provider liable where no importer or authorized representative established in the European Union can be identified.
Article 6.292(5) makes a distributor liable where no manufacturer, importer, authorized representative or fulfilment service provider established in the European Union can be identified and the distributor does not name one of them, or its own supplier, within a month of the injured person's request.
Article 6.292(5) applies the same rule to an online platform provider within the meaning of the Digital Services Act that is not an economic operator, where consumers can conclude distance contracts with traders on the platform and the conditions of Article 6(3) of that Regulation are met. Article 6.292(6) applies the section where liability arises for damage to a natural person.
Article 6.294(1) makes a product defective if it does not meet the safety requirements set by product-safety law or other safety requirements that a natural person is entitled to expect. Article 6.294(1) point 3 lists among the circumstances the effect of any ability of the product to keep learning or to acquire new features after it was placed on the market or put into use. Article 6.294(1) point 6 lists the product's safety requirements, including safety-relevant cybersecurity requirements.
Article 6.295 requires the injured person to prove the damage, the defect and the causal link between them. Article 6.296(2) denies a manufacturer that integrates a software component into a product a right of recourse against the maker of the defective component where that maker was a micro or small enterprise when it placed the component on the market and the manufacturer waived the right in their contract.
Article 6.297(1) point 1 presumes a product defective where the defendant, on the court's demand, does not disclose relevant evidence that the claimant requested and showed to be relevant. Article 6.297(1) point 2 presumes a product defective where the claimant proves that it does not meet product-safety requirements that protect against the risk of the harm suffered.
Article 6.297(1) point 3 presumes a product defective where the claimant proves that the damage was caused by an obvious malfunction in use as intended or in ordinary circumstances. Article 6.297(2) presumes the causal link where the product is defective and the losses suffered match the damage that a product of that quality ordinarily causes.
Article 6.297(3) presumes the defect, the causal link or both where the claimant faces excessive difficulties, including technical or scientific complexity, and makes it likely that the product is defective or that the causal link exists. Article 6.298(1) point 1 releases an economic operator that proves the product probably was not defective when it was placed on the market, put into use or supplied by the distributor, or that the defect arose later.
That release does not apply where the inadequate quality of a product under the manufacturer's control was caused by a related digital service, by software including updates or upgrades, by the lack of software updates or upgrades needed for safety, or by a substantial modification. Article 6.298(1) point 2 releases an economic operator where the quality of the product deteriorated because mandatory legal requirements were followed.
Article 6.298(1) point 3 releases an economic operator where the objective state of scientific and technical knowledge, when the product was placed on the market or put into use or while the manufacturer controlled it, did not allow the defect to be discovered. Article 6.298(3) does not reduce an economic operator's liability where the damage was caused both by the defect and by the act or omission of a third party.
Article 6.299(1) point 1 covers damage from death or injury to health, including damage to psychological health. Article 6.299(1) point 2 covers damage from the destruction or corruption of data, as the Data Governance Act defines data, that is not used for professional purposes.
Article 6.299(1) point 3 covers damage to any property except the defective product itself, a product damaged by a defective component that the manufacturer integrated or connected under its control, and property used exclusively for professional purposes. Article 6.300(1) sets a limitation period of three years from the day the injured person learned or should have learned of the damage, the defect and the identity of the liable economic operator.
Article 6.300(2) extinguishes the right to sue ten years after the defective product was placed on the market or put into use. Article 6.300(2) extends that period to 25 years where a court finds that a later-revealed disability or other injury to health prevented the injured person from suing within the ten years.
When LexLint raises it
When your app profile says your app crawls the web, trains models, generates content with AI, deploys a chatbot, sends automated outreach, makes high-risk automated decisions, processes voice recordings, processes biometric data, publishes adult content, operates a social platform, serves under-18s, operates an app store, ships a mobile app, reuses other publishers' content, distributes a software product, records calls, records text chat or tracks devices.