Unfortunately, I routinely represent clients here in Mississippi who were injured by a product they purchased. Often, the product itself was benign and was used appropriately but had some design flaw that resulted in it becoming dangerous. These cases are always sad, as my client has usually been injured, has lost work, and may take years to recover. In the worst cases, I represent the family of a person who was killed by a defective product. Attorneys for the other side, the product manufacturer or store that sold the product, are always aggressive in their defense, as they know that the damages my clients are due are massive.
If you have been injured, you must find experienced counsel to help you attain your fair share of compensation for your loss of income and injury. Barrett Law has the experience to help you if you if you were injured by a product you purchased. Contact us now at (800) 707-9577.
The Two Parts to a Products Liability Claim
There are two parts to proving a products liability case. The first part is that you were injured and the product caused your injury. The second part is that the product was unreasonably dangerous, and there are several ways to prove “dangerousness” in this context.
Part One—You Were Injured, and the Product Caused Your Injury
This may seem pretty straightforward and often is. First, you have to prove that you were injured. If you are pursuing a personal injury claim, you have some injury. That said, people are injured all of the time. So you must also be able to show that the product in question caused that injury. For example, if you have a broken leg, you have an injury. But if you are arguing that a faulty ladder rung caused that injury, you will need to either show a broken rung, have a witness that saw the rung break, or some combination of the two. Without that sort of evidence, the ladder company’s attorneys may successfully argue that you broke your leg some other way and are simply blaming their ladder to get a windfall.
Part Two—The Product Was Unreasonably Dangerous
To meet the second requirement of a products liability claim, you must show that the product was unreasonably dangerous. “Unreasonably” is a somewhat subjective standard. A chainsaw provides a good example to explore this standard and the others that follow. As most people who work with them know, chainsaws are inherently dangerous even if used safely. So just being injured by a chainsaw is not enough to recover in a personal injury case against a chainsaw manufacturer or store. To prove that the chainsaw was “unreasonably” dangerous, you first have to show that you were using it appropriately. Using the product appropriately generally means using it within the manufacturer’s specifications. In this example, you would have to show that you were using the chainsaw to saw wood of the appropriate size for the saw under appropriate conditions. If you were using a trimming saw to take down a massive weeping willow, you were not using the chainsaw appropriately. On the other hand, if you were using the trimming saw to cut a branch off that weeping willow, you have a good argument that you were using the saw appropriately.
Simply being injured by a product that you were using appropriately is insufficient to win your case—the product must also have some defect. If we can prove that you were using the chainsaw appropriately and were injured as a result of that use, we will then have to show that a design defect, manufacturing defect, or a failure to warn caused your injury.
Design Defect—a design defect is what the name implies; the product had a design flaw that resulted in an unreasonable risk of injury when the product was used appropriately. Imagine a chainsaw that had a guard in between the handle and spinning blade that was designed poorly and allows the user’s hand to slide over the guard when some routine event occurred, such as the chainsaw blade catching on tree knot. That would be a design defect that creates an unforeseen hazardous condition when the product is used as intended.
Manufacturing Defect—a manufacturing defect is a flaw in the creation or building of a properly designed product. Imagine the same chainsaw but with a properly designed guard. However, in this example, imagine that the manufacturer used a cheaper, lightweight plastic for the guard that resulted in the user’s hand breaking the guard if the chainsaw caught on a knot in a tree. That flaw was not the designer’s fault but was caused by the poor way the product ‘s manufacturing.
Failure to Warn—finally, a failure to warn is a flaw in a properly designed product that was manufactured correctly but lacks sufficient instructions to warn a person of a reasonably foreseeable hazard. Again, imagine the chainsaw from the above examples. If the saw was designed and manufactured correctly, but the manual failed to indicate that the blade would likely jump back if it was used to cut wet wood, that would be a failure to warn. Failure to warn cases usually involve products that are normally safe, but the manufacturer fails to warn the consumer of a situation where the product is unreasonably dangerous.
What Should You Do If You or a Loved One Has Been Injured by a Product?
If you or a loved one was injured by a product, you might have a viable claim for compensation for your injuries, loss of work, and other harm. Let experienced counsel take care of preserving medical records, attaining expert diagnoses, and dealing with your opposing attorneys. These are essential tasks that a personal injury attorney can handle for you while you concentrate on healing.
Call Barrett Law now, an experienced Mississippi personal injury law firm, to represent you if you have suffered an injury due to a product. Contact us now at (800) 707-9577.
