Products Liability
According to the 2003 Annotated Strategic Plan published by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, every year there are over 32.7 million injuries and an average of 23,900 deaths due to consumer products. Additionally, these product-related injuries and deaths cost Americans $700 billion every year.
With numerous injuries and deaths unfortunately occurring annually, Richardson Maples, PC provides legal assistance to consumers injured by dangerous or defective products in products liability cases. Our attorneys excel in representing plaintiffs in products liability cases with skill, commitment, and experience.
Our attorneys have expertise in an array of products liability claims, including claims involving the following:
- Defective warning: The product might have unclear warnings or no warnings regarding the possible dangers of using the product. If the product does not have warnings labeled on the package or in the instruction pamphlet, for example, then a consumer might have a claim for damages against the manufacturer and other entities along the distribution chain, including suppliers and distributors.
- Design Defect: People may suffer injuries from using a product due to the product's defective design. Despite being manufactured properly, the faulty design may cause harm to thousands or millions of consumers who use that product.
- Manufacturing Defect: When a product has a manufacturing defect, then the product may not work properly because it was not built as specified by the product's design. Manufacturing defects may be more noticeable than design defects, because unlike the defective product, the other properly manufactured products will look identical to each other.
- Inadequate Testing: This may occur when proper tests were not performed on the product before the product was mass-produced for the public. For example, a battery of tests is sometimes conducted on children's toys to ensure that they do not pose a choking hazard. One such test a manufacturer might use is the "drop test" where a toy is dropped from a high platform to determine whether the toy will break into small pieces, causing lacerations or posing a choking danger to children.
The harm people might suffer from defective products or inadequate testing of a product can be serious, causing such injuries as broken bones, choking, contusions, lacerations, or poisoning, and even death. For a discussion on serious injuries and damages that may be recoverable in a wrongful death action, please see the Wrongful Death and Catastrophic Injuries page.
The lawyers at Richardson Maples, PC take the time to evaluate your case, advise you of your options, research the principal issues, and consult the necessary experts. If you have been injured in a products liability matter, contact Richardson Maples, PC for a free consultation.
