Products liability litigation is one of the more complicated and involved types of civil litigation, and not all lawyers or law firms are willing to take on these cases. At Cobb, Boyd, White & Cobb, our attorneys have the skill, experience and resources to handle products liability claims from the pre-suit stage all the way to a jury verdict, if necessary. From our office in Dothan, our firm handles cases throughout southeastern Alabama and along the Florida panhandle.
Defective product litigation can involve any number of legal theories of liability, including breach of implied warranty, breach of express warranty, and negligence. Perhaps most products liability claims, however, are brought under a theory of strict product liability. Under strict liability, it is not required for a plaintiff to prove that the defendant was somehow negligent in causing the plaintiff’s injury. Instead, it is enough to prove that a defect existed in the product when it left the manufacturer’s control, and this defect led to the victim’s injuries. Strict liability has been applied not only to the manufacturer, but also to distributors, retailers and re-sellers as well.
Even when proving negligence is not an issue, products liability cases are still some of the most complex and challenging personal injury cases to litigate. Plaintiffs must often face giant corporations and sift through innumerable documents to locate the evidence they need. Defendants, meanwhile, often find themselves litigating claims from numerous plaintiffs in multiple jurisdictions, or facing class actions and consolidated multidistrict litigation. Proving or disproving the existence of a defect and its relationship to an accident or injury often involves extremely complicated fact patterns, and often requires the assistance of engineers or other industry expert witnesses. At Cobb, Boyd, White & Cobb, we have the resources to obtain necessary experts from day one and get started right away building a strong case regarding the claim.
Our firm can provide sound legal advice and effective representation in cases involving any of the major types of typical product defect claims, including design defects, manufacturing defects, and failure to warn:
Design Defects – A faulty design can cause an automobile to rollover or explode in an otherwise minimal impact. Power tools, appliances and industrial equipment built without necessary safety guards or automatic shut-offs can be considered unreasonably dangerous and expose the product maker to liability in the case of an injury.
Manufacturing Defects – A product or component part build with substandard materials, or assembled negligently, can fail at a critical moment, causing serious injury or death. Depending upon the reason for the defect, one unit or thousands may suffer from the same flaw.
Failure to Warn – Consumer and commercial products must be accompanied by sufficient product documentation that instructs the user on their safe use and provides adequate warnings about dangers, such as keeping clear of moving parts or only using the product in a well-ventilated area or with particular eye wear, gloves or other safety gear. Products which lack adequate warning may be considered defective under Alabama product liability law.
Defective product claims are complicated, and experienced legal representation is essential. For help with a product liability claim in southeastern Alabama or the Florida panhandle, trust the knowledgeable and skilled attorneys at Cobb, Boyd, White & Cobb in Dothan to provide qualified and capable representation.