During 2017 (the most recent year for which we have a fiscal year review), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reported nearly 3,000 product recalls affecting more than 9,000 different products. These products included a … [Read more...] about Ohio Product Recalls: What Are My Legal Rights?
Product and Pharmaceutical Liability
When you’ve been harmed by a product or a medication, your rights and the procedures for exercising those rights are a bit different than in a standard personal injury case. At Plevin & Gallucci, we’re proud to have played a role in Cuyahoga County’s litigation against manufacturers and distributors of the opioids that have plagued the area. But that’s just one of the many examples of how defective, poorly-designed, inappropriately marketed and/or inherently dangerous products can harm people in Ohio and beyond.
Defective products can touch every area of our lives, from the toys we give our children to the cars we drive and the medications we rely on to maintain or improve our health. Because this is a serious public safety issue and the consumer is at a disadvantage compared with the manufacturer, Ohio law provides consumers with a bit of extra protection. Generally, the manufacturer of a product is subject to strict liability in a product liability case.
Ohio product liability claims may be based on faulty design, manufacturing defects, failure to warn of risks associated with use of the product, or failure of the product to conform to representations made by the manufacturer. Because strict liability means the plaintiff doesn’t have to show that the manufacturer was negligent, the company may be held responsible even if they took reasonable care in the design and manufacture of the product. For example, if the manufacturer obtained a defective part from a third party and didn’t know about the defect when it incorporated the part into its product, the company may still be held liable.
Others in the supply chain, such as the retailer that sells the product to the end consumer, may also be liable for injury caused by a defective product. However, the standards to establish a claim against a wholesaler, retailer, or other participant in moving the product to the consumer are different, and the burden on the plaintiff is a bit higher. Recently, new complications have arisen with regard to third-party sellers on websites like Amazon. The Ohio Supreme Court ruled that, at least in some circumstances, a platform like Amazon isn’t a supplier under Ohio law.
Determining whether an injury occurred due to a design, manufacturing, or labeling defect and whether others in the supply chain might also be responsible can be complicated. An experienced Ohio product liability attorney is likely your best source of guidance and assistance in identifying possible responsible parties and locating and hiring appropriate experts to help prove the product was defective.
If you’ve suffered serious side effects from a drug, been injured when a product malfunctioned, or otherwise been harmed by a pharmaceutical or other product, it’s in your best interest to get legal advice right away.
PFOA Lawsuits: What’s So Dangerous About PFOA?
In March, we discussed a new Teflon lawsuit filed by the Ohio attorney general against DuPont Co. and its spin-off, Chemours Co. The lawsuit alleged that DuPont had been dumping dangerous chemicals into the Ohio River, knowingly … [Read more...] about PFOA Lawsuits: What’s So Dangerous About PFOA?
Roundup® Lawsuits in Ohio: What You Need to Know
In early August 2018, a jury in California awarded $289 million to a man named Lee Johnson, a former school groundskeeper who developed cancer after repeated exposure to the popular herbicide Roundup®. Johnson’s was one of about … [Read more...] about Roundup® Lawsuits in Ohio: What You Need to Know
Ohio Generic Medicine Lawsuits: What You Need to Know
When your doctor prescribes medication for you, your pharmacist will often fill that prescription with a generic version of the drug prescribed, rather than the brand-name drug. Brand-name medicines are so called because they were … [Read more...] about Ohio Generic Medicine Lawsuits: What You Need to Know
Ohio Construction Workers and Opioid Death Rates
Construction is one of the most dangerous industries in Ohio and the United States. Although transportation-related incidents are responsible for the majority of workplace fatalities, construction injuries are right behind, with … [Read more...] about Ohio Construction Workers and Opioid Death Rates
Ohio Defective Toy Lawsuits: Legal Rights & Responsibilities
Children and their parents here in Cleveland are looking forward to a safe, happy holiday season. Parents and others buying gifts for children should enjoy their shopping, but be aware that toys may cause injury either because … [Read more...] about Ohio Defective Toy Lawsuits: Legal Rights & Responsibilities