Areas of Concentration

Products Liability

The majority of jurisdictions in the United States provide plaintiffs with causes of action based on one or more of three different theories: Negligence, Breach of Warranty and Strict Liability. In manufacturing products for sale to the public, manufacturers are required to safely design and manufacture their products, provide adequate warnings and protect the consuming public against foreseeable misuse of the products that are purchased. Cohen, Placitella & Roth has an impressive record of recovering damages from product manufacturers that are responsible for failing to supply safe products to the public under the following theories:

Negligence

A manufacturer can be held liable for negligence if lack of reasonable care in the design, assembly or production of the manufacturer's product caused harm. For example, a product manufacturer may be found negligent if its employees failed to perform their work properly, and/or if management sanctioned improper procedures and an unsafe product was made.

A rural well installation company technician was killed when a well tank he was replacing exploded during the draining process. Our investigation revealed the design of the plastic base for the steel well tank permitted pooling of condensation which caused corrosion and pitting over time allowing for the tank to fracture and explode during pressurization. The settlement in this case permitted the worker's compensation carrier to recover all of its medical lien and a substantial portion of its indemnity claim in addition to recovering a substantial six figure amount for the family of the deceased.

Breach of Warranty

The failure of a seller to fulfill the terms of a promise, claim, or representation made concerning the quality or type of the product manufactured for sale. The law assumes that a seller provides certain implied warranties (sometimes express) of merchantability concerning goods that are sold.

Strict Liability

This theory extends the responsibility of a product manufacturer and all parties in the chain of distribution to any individual who might be injured by the product, even without fault by the manufacturer. Any injured person, even those without a direct relationship to the product may sue for damages caused by the product. The injured party must prove that the item was defective, the defect proximately caused the injury, and the defect rendered the product unreasonably dangerous.

Types of defects

Does the product contain a defect that makes it unsafe for its intended use? If so, what type of defect is it, and how will it be identified?

Design Defects

These defects exist when an entire product line is designed in a way that poses unreasonable hazards/risks to consumers. For example, an electrical panel manufacturer's design of a breaker box incorporating screw holes for the cover directly in line with energized lines. In that case, products manufactured in conformity with the intended design would be defective.

Manufacturing Defects

A manufacturing defect arises when a product is improperly assembled. For example, hot water heaters that are improperly welded at the assembly plant would be classified as a manufacturing defect.

Warnings

In addition to design or manufacturing defects, things other than the product itself can cause it to be defective. For example, caustic chemicals should be packaged in appropriate containers. Improper labeling, instructions, or warnings on a product or its container also make a product defective. Dangerous products should carry warning labels to explain how the product should be used and under what circumstances the product is likely to cause harm.

Proper labeling/warnings include claims made in sales brochures, product displays, and public advertising. These claims extend beyond warranty or negligence law, because a seller is strictly liable to users or purchasers of the product who are not in privity with the seller. A manufacturer who creates a demand for goods through advertising has the responsibility to determine that the product has the qualities represented to the public.