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Product-line exception: A special rule that says if a company buys all the things from another company and starts making the same things with the same name, they might be responsible for any bad things the old company did. This is because they are using the old company's good reputation to sell their products.
The product-line exception is a legal rule that allows a successor corporation to be held liable for the acts of its predecessor in certain circumstances. Normally, when a company acquires another company's assets, it is not responsible for any liabilities or legal claims against the previous company. However, the product-line exception creates an exception to this rule when the successor corporation continues to produce the same product line under the same or a similar name as the predecessor and benefits from the predecessor's goodwill.
Suppose Company A manufactures a line of toys and sells them under the brand name "FunTime Toys." Company B acquires all of Company A's assets, including the rights to the "FunTime Toys" brand name, and begins producing the same line of toys under that name. If a child is injured while playing with one of the toys and sues for damages, Company B may be held liable under the product-line exception if it can be shown that it held itself out as a continuation of Company A and benefited from the goodwill associated with the "FunTime Toys" brand.
Another example could be a pharmaceutical company that acquires another company's assets and continues to produce a drug under the same name. If the drug is found to have harmful side effects and patients sue for damages, the product-line exception may apply if the successor company benefited from the predecessor's reputation and goodwill in the market.
These examples illustrate how the product-line exception can be used to hold a successor corporation responsible for the actions of its predecessor when it continues to produce the same product line under the same or a similar name and benefits from the predecessor's reputation and goodwill.