Minor Use Registrations: What is third party liability?

Third party liability refers to a clause added to several minor use labels in Canada. The 3rd party liability clause has been an important factor in the success of the minor use registration program, which has provided our industry with several important registrations.

Registrants are sometimes reluctant to add new uses to their pesticide labels, especially if the new use is for a low-acreage and high value crop. In these cases, there is little economic incentive for the registrant to add the new minor use to the label, and the risks associated with liability can be very high. To encourage registrants to support important minor use registrations, the third party liability clause was developed.

Example of a third party liability clause:

The DIRECTIONS FOR USE for this product for the use(s) described on the Supplementary Label were developed by persons other than (Registrant xx) and accepted for registration by Health Canada under the User Requested Minor Use Label Expansion program. (Registrant xx) itself makes no representation or warranty with respect to performance (efficacy) and/or crop tolerance (phytotoxicity) claims for this product when used on the crop(s) listed on this Supplementary Label. Accordingly, the Buyer and User assume all liability arising, and agree to hold Registrant xx harmless from any claims based on efficacy and/or phytotoxicity in connection with the use(s) described on this Supplementary Label.

In other words, if the product causes crop damage or if it fails to control the labeled weeds, the user cannot sue the registrant for damages.

However, the registrant remains responsible for the environmental impact and toxicological effects of their product, as they supplied the information in support of the original registration.

Table 1: Examples of products used on berry crops with third party liability clauses on the label

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