When providing goods to the general public, manufacturers must ensure that the products are safe for consumption. If their negligence results in an injury, you might have grounds to file for a product liability lawsuit. Defective products can range from children’s toys to cars to medical devices, and even everyday household items. Defective products are responsible for many serious injuries to consumers each year.
We’ll review the different types of compensation you can pursue in your product liability case, the important details surrounding such cases, and how your St. Charles Parish product liability lawyer can help you seek the compensation you deserve.
Product Liability Attorneys
The professionals at Laborde Earles Injury Lawyers are ready and able to handle your case. Our lawyers are well-versed in product liability and have handled many such cases over the years. Our dedicated legal team can help you pursue compensation for all of your damages, including medical bills, lost income, pain and suffering, mental anguish, and much more.
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What Constitutes a Product Liability Claim?
Grounds for product liability claims include defects in manufacturing or design, or a lack of directions or warnings when known dangers exist.
- Manufacturing Defect: When the defect of the product stems from the process of building or creating it, this is called a manufacturing defect. One example could be a baby stroller made from potentially harmful materials, causing injury to the infant placed in it.
- Design Defect: When the defect is inherent in the product’s design, the company must review the product and redesign it accordingly. This extends to the packaging of the product as well.
- Insufficient Instructions or Warnings: Even if a product is safe when used as intended, the company is still liable for sufficient warnings or instructions. For example, if the product is potentially dangerous if misused, such as a circular saw, sufficient warnings that the product is dangerous must be included, regardless of how obvious the hazard might be.
If you have been injured as a result of a product’s defects, a St. Charles Parish product liability lawyer from Laborde Earles Injury Lawyers can carefully review your case and develop a legal plan to move forward.
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What is Considered a Defective Product?
Any type of product that results in an injury when used as intended is considered a defective product. If the product is found defective, you can hold the manufacturer accountable and seek compensation for your associated damages.
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Damages in a Defective Product Liability Lawsuit
You can recover many different types of damages resulting from a product liability case, including:
- Compensatory Damages: This includes lost income, medical bills, property damage, and more.
- Pain and Suffering: You can be compensated for the pain and suffering you endured as a result of the defective product.
- Loss of Consortium: If the injury that you incurred has affected your relationship with your spouse negatively, they can be compensated as well.
- Punitive Damage: Punitive damages are awarded when the defendant’s behavior was reprehensible, as a warning to the entire community. For example, they might be awarded if a company knew its product caused cancer or other illnesses, but continued to sell it and offered no warning to consumers. Punitive damages are only awarded very rarely.
These are just a few of the damages that could be applicable in your case. A product liability attorney serving the St. Charles Parish area can determine exactly which damages apply to your specific situation.
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What Evidence Do You Need To Prove a Product Liability Case?
The laws for proving a liability case vary from state to state. In Louisiana, strict liability is enforced. This means that you do not have to prove fault, only that the product was defective and caused an injury due to the negligence of the manufacturer.
Some of the evidence in your case could include:
- The actual product itself or photographs of it (for example, if the defective product is a car)
- Where was it purchased
- Any materials that were included with the product
- Photos of your related injury
- Medical documentation (bills from the hospital, the doctor’s report, x-rays, etc.)
We also recommend that you document everything about the case in a journal or notebook, as memory gets foggy over time:
- Details of what happened
- Eyewitness testimony
- Descriptions of the injuries that resulted from the product
- Doctor’s appointments and travel time
- Time off you had to take off work to heal
- The impact the injury caused on your family, your ability to work, and your quality of life
Statute of Limitations for Product Liability
Every state has a statute of limitations, or a specific time frame, in which to file your case. In Louisiana, this time frame is generally one year, beginning from the date of the injury.
However, there are some exceptions. In cases of “delayed discovery,” where the illness or injury isn’t discovered until long after you’ve used the product, as the symptoms may not appear right away. In that event, the one-year time frame would begin the day you discovered the injury or illness. A product liability lawyer can tell you more, depending on the unique circumstances of your case.
Contact a St. Charles Parish Product Liability Lawyer Today
If you or a loved one have been injured by a defective product, a St. Charles Parish product liability lawyer can help you seek the compensation and justice that you deserve.
Get in touch with Laborde Earles Injury Lawyers today to schedule your free case evaluation. We’re just a phone call away. Let us take the stress of your legal case off your shoulders. Our dedicated attorneys can handle the legwork of the case while you rest and focus on recovering from your injuries.
Get The HelpYou Need(337) 777-7777To Schedule a FREE CONSULTATION
24 hours a day • 7 days a week
