Reviews of The American Museum of Tort Law (Museum)

Emily A

Rude older woman followed us around the museum. Aside from that, the art pieces illustrating legal cases are fascinating. My friend, a second year law student, got a lot out of it and I enjoyed the movie!

Luke Lanciano

Very engaging little museum about a topic that is very important, but not well understood. The drive is beautiful, staff friendly, and exhibits really help anyone who is interested understand the subject matter.

Hilde Weisert

Very well done exhibits, educational and entertaining, good for the family and legal buffs. About an hour or two is plenty to take it all in. Good bookstore.

Peter Louglas

The only museum of tort law and consumer protection. Featuring famous consumer lawsuits and a great selection of dangerous toys for kids (for display purposes only) . Fun for young and old alike! Flaming rats, exploding Pintos, and a real live swing axle Corvair. Great souvenirs and friendly staff. Plan to spend an hour or so. Well worth the visit.

Ric Nalette

A fascinating look at the history of tort law, presented in a fun and engaging manner. The lack of revolving exhibits means one visit is all you need, but it is certainly worth that one visit.

Melody G

Very interesting

Charles Colby

Very informative and interesting. Accessible exhibits on the background of many famous cases I heard about (eg, McDonalds coffee and exploding Ford Pintos) and some more obscure like the "burning rat" case. Friendly staff and nice gift shop. The drive to Winsted is very scenic also.

Matt Ballard

Staff was very knowledgeable and friendly. The design work and illustrations made it easy and engaging for even a non lawyer such as myself to comprehend and want to learn more about tort law in the United States.

Dianna Glynn

Very interesting and informative

David Harrigan

Fascinating history about the law.

Rich March

Great visit as it is super clean and mapped out well. Employee's are helpful and you walk away with a hmmm and why would companies do what they did. Go and find out , be sure to check with your library for a discounted ticket.

Lisandra LTA

Cool , informative quick visit.

Jessica Tessman

Very interesting museum. Definitely recommend going on a tour! This museum got me thinking and also gave me more knowledge on tort law.

Edward Poole

A real gem! A great place for anyone to visit. Very informative. Very knowledgeable staff.

Kashhehw Gotnutz

Very informative and educational!

James Snietka

Very informative and educational. The presentation was easily accessible for younger visitors (early teens) but was written for adults. The two videos were great at explaining Tort Law as well. Worth the visit, even if it doesn't take long to see everything.

Maxwell C. Aronoff

Great museum. Could use a few more artifacts but nonetheless fascinating.

Evan Williams

Get a new perspective on our litigous society.

Cliff Fuller

Opening in 2015, The American Museum of Torts is housed in a former bank just minutes from Main Street in Winstead, CT. The location makes more sense when you realize that Winstead is Ralph Nader's hometown and that he is behind the museum. Tort law is the area of law that protects individuals from the bad acts of others - whether they are other people, a group of people, or a corporation. Created in England in medieval times, this was borne from common law and was even listed as a undeniable right of the people in the Declaration of Independence. If you've seen and enjoyed such movies as Erin Brockovich, A Civil Action, or The Insider, then you are already familiar with the importance of tort law in the United States. The Museum is a short but immersive look at the history of torts and examples that illustrate their importance in history. There are interactive displays including touchscreen information panels about seminal cases, some of which you may know about. [The "Erin Brockovich" case is one such example that is featured]. One antechamber features recalled dangerous toys displaying some famously unsafe examples (remember lawn darts?). There is a theater space with two short films on a loop. One is an overview of tort history and tort law narrated by Phil Donahue and featuring sound bites by Ralph Nader. The other is a famous case involving a 7-year old's adverse and horrific almost deadly reaction to Children's Motrin - which the company didn't cite on their warning label because "it would lead to a decrease in sales." This case was only settled after 10 years in 2013. The main room's centerpiece is a showroom-model Corvair automobile - which was made famous (and called out as unsafe) in Ralph Nader's seminal book "Unsafe at Any Speed."). This room also tells the stories of other David vs. Goliath tort law cases including Ford's exploding Pintos, the tobacco industry's complicity and deception in promoting & marketing cigarettes, and the landmark McDonald's "scalding coffee" lawsuit from the late 80's. The Museum has partnered with renowned political cartoonists and graphic artists to display the information in oversized, Lichtenstein-esque pop art comic book style on the walls, with funny yet bitingly satirical details included in each illustration. As you go through the museum, it takes about 30-40 minutes to see it all. But in such a short time period it teaches you just what tort law is and why the people that signed the Declaration of Independence cited it just after "no taxation without representation" in the document. The museum debunks what one thinks they know about personal injury law. It's not only ever about a client extracting money in a frivolous lawsuit. It's about speaking truth to power and calling out the corporations that value their bottom line and profits over the welfare of their consumers and the citizenry. Every one of these cases led to corporations being forced to make safer, more ethical decisions about their products, and not write off human lives to increase their profit margin. If you are ever traveling through New England en route to Hartford, or Western CT/MA, it's well worth the time to take an hour to visit this museum.

Kevin Mccall

Interesting displays. Lots of information

M. Neva Arnot

Very engaging educational center (rather than 'museum').

Russ Dittmer

This is a wonderful museum, showing the history of tort law, and how tort law remains a powerful weapon for the common citizen against large and powerful entities...

Faith Girdler

Fascinating look at Class Action suits, brought by Ralph Nader (founder of this museum) against Ford Pinto (Unsafe at Any Speed) & the Tobacco lndustry .

Bill S

This museum offers a unique opportunity to observe the nuances of the subject. Specific detailed presentations provide a glimpse into the American way and history of thought that will inspire you to think about how you might have contributed to the events and happenings that are shown.

Mike K

Cute little museum, with a variety of interactive exhibits illustrating critical cases in the history of personal injury and environmental safety law. Reasonably priced and can be enjoyed over the course of an hour or two.

Torry Chen

Terrific museum situated in beautiful Winsted, Connecticut. The place is well run and contains cool stuff - well worth the trip from Waterloo, ON. You can even get autographed books at the gift shop!

Anthony Cimino

I honestly didn't know what to expect when I walked into the museum. Torts? What's a tort? Are there free samples? I'll take a blueberry one. No, cherry. Turns out that torts are not a food at all but possibly one of the most interesting aspects of the law (FOX should do a show about this instead of Cops). My favorite part, besides the very cool t-shirts, was the exhibits on deadly toys. I guess my mother was right about lawn darts.