Defective Products Lawyer in Maryland Heights, MO.

Defective Products Lawyer in Maryland Heights, MO. If you or a loved one sustained an injury because of a dangerous product, call a Burger law defective products lawyer in Maryland Heights, MO now at (314) 500-HURT or fill out our online form for a free consultation.

Picture what you do every day: You may have a skincare routine or put on some hair gel in the morning, take allergy medication, go to school or work on your bike, sit at in a chair or work around heavy machinery, and/or use your cell phone on and off throughout the day. You may use lawnmowers on the weekend. You may even have a joint replacement or other medical device. It seems we're always using or surrounded by some sort of technology that had to be designed, produced, shipped and bought. When there is a breakdown in that process and a product becomes hazardous, it can have a ruinous impact on Maryland Heights, MO individuals and families. If tragedy struck you, you need the expert and dedicated legal services of Burger Law's defective products lawyer team to stand up to powerful corporations and win you the full financial recovery you are owed.

In our three decades of negotiation, litigation and trial experience, we have delivered our clients in Maryland Heights and throughout Missouri over $170 million. Talking to us is free, so there's no reason not to reach out. Call a defective products lawyer in Maryland Heights, MO today at (314) 500-HURT.

If you were harmed by a dangerous product in Maryland Heights, MO, learn how much your claim may be worth by filling out our complimentary personal injury calculator.



Below are some helpful links and FAQS from your Burger Law defective products injury lawyer in Maryland Heights, MO:

• FDA Recall List and Safety Alerts
• Consumer Products Safety Commission Recall List
• U.S. Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Recall List
• Recalls.Gov
• What to Do if You're Injured by a Dangerous Product?
• Can I Sue a Company if Their Product Gave Me Cancer?
• Can I Sue for a Defective Car Part if it Caused My Accident?

How Common Are Defective Products in Maryland Heights, MO?

The Consumer Product Safety Commission estimates that dangerous products account for more than 29 million injuries and 21,000 fatalities every year.

Based on statistics from the Insurance Information Institute, in 2019 the mean average that people injured by faulty products recovered was over $7 million in product liability cases that went to trial, while the median was $2 million. That shows the unbelievable harm that can be caused when manufacturers and vendors do not adhere to the rules.

If you or someone you know was injured by a dangerous product, call a Burger Law defective products lawyer in Maryland Heights, MO for understanding, devoted and experienced support and legal representation.

What is the Process for Defective Products Claims in Maryland Heights, MO?

Under Missouri Revised Statute §537.760, you and your Maryland Heights, MO defective products lawyer can can hold a person or corporation accountable for your injuries if three factors are met:

1. The company was part of the product's chain of distribution.
2. You used the product in a way rationally expected.
3. One or both of the following:
   1. The product had a defective condition that was unreasonably dangerous when it left the manufacturer's or distributor's that caused you direct harm, and/or
   2. You were injured because there was a dangerous characteristic of the product and the labeling or instructions did not give adequate warning.

The "stream of commerce" refers to anyone involved in the product from initial design to purchase, including a distributor or vendor. Pursuant to Missouri Revised Statute §5537.762, someone sold the product but were not involved in the design or manufacture of it can avoid liability if:

• The manufacturer is known, still exists and is financially capable of paying you for all of your damages.
• The vendor signs an affidavit under threat of perjury that they had nothing to do with the product beyond selling it.
• No other party in the case submits evidence that the distributor took part in any other aspect of the design and manufacturing process.
• The dismissal is requested to the court no later than 60 days after the complaint is filed.

If those conditions are satisfied, the vendor would then be dismissed without prejudice, meaning they are not permanently dismissed from the case. So, if later evidence demonstrates that they were actually involved in the design or manufacture of the product, were otherwise responsible for the dangerous condition or the manufacturer is unable to compensate you for all of the economic, physical and emotional hardships you sustained, your defective products lawyer at Burger Law would have them re-entered into the claim and ensure you get the great financial recovery you are owed.

Missouri Revised Statute §537.764 provides one defense for "state of the art products," where a dangerous condition could not be fully understood before use by the public. This defense is only applicable to for failure to warn product liability cases, and the burden of proof is on the defense.

Negligence vs. Strict Liability in Defective Products Cases

Most personal injury lawsuits in Maryland Heights, MO depend on the idea of negligence. We all have an responsibility to each other's safety in certain situations; for example, trucking companies must not overwork their drivers. When someone is negligent, for instance if if there a loose floor boards at a restaurant that cause you to fall they may be found responsible for your damages and would be obligated to reimburse you for your injuries and other damages.

By contrast, most product liability or dangerous products cases are strict liability claims, meaning that anyone involved in the manufacture and sale of a product is liable for any injuries a product causes, irrespective of negligence. According to jury instruction revisions made by the Missouri Supreme Court, defendant's in a product liability case may be held to the strict liability standard if you and your Maryland Heights, MO defective products lawyer can demonstrate that the product was "unreasonably dangerous" — meaning it is unsafe when used as intended or in a foreseeable way — at the moment that it came into your possession.

Missouri classifies three different ways in which your defective products lawyer can argue a product was dangerous:

1. Design Defect: A design defect is an innate fault in the design that subsequently affects all products with the same design. An example is a toy intended for children that contains a choking hazard.
2. Manufacturing Defects: A product can be designed effectively and safely but still become hazardous because of mistakes in the manufacturing process. This can either affect only one product, for example, one can of soda may have a bug in it, or all of them may contain potentially dangerous chemicals. An example could be bugs or other contaminants found in beverages or using the wrong kind of screws or bolts.
3. Failure to Warn of Known Dangers or Risks That Should Have Been Anticipated: This occurs when the product was not defective through design or manufacture, but rather when the manufacturer did not include correct and clear instructions or when there is a danger that could come about from normal use of the product. Examples include failing to warn that a hairdryer might cause an electric shock if it comes in contact with water or food packaging that does not mention all the ingredients and causes an allergic reaction. The company that makes a product generally does not have to warn against dangers that a reasonable person would foresee. For example, they do not have to warn you that a chainsaw can cut you.

Strict liability is intended to incentivize corporations to implement comprehensive safety procedures for guaranteeing the safety of their products. However, too often corporations do not value our safety and try to focus more on cutting costs than ensuring their products will not hurt anyone. When that happens, your Burger Law defective products lawyer in Maryland Heights, MO will hold them accountable by conducting a full investigation of your case and demanding nothing but complete compensation.

Comparative Negligence in Defective Productions Claims in Maryland Heights, MO

Manufacturers, vendors and anyone else in the stream of commerce will often rely on the theory of comparative negligence when building their defense. Missouri Revised Statute §537.765 permits for the manufacturer or vendor to posit that you are liable for a portion of your injuries and, therefore, they do not have to pay you your full financial recovery. For example, if a jury awards you $100,000 but finds you were 30 percent at fault for the accident, you will only receive $70,000. Often, claims of comparative fault are a dishonest attempt a defendant makes to avoid their obligation to reimburse you for the damage their product did to you. Your Maryland Heights, MO defective products lawyer at Burger Law will not let them get away with it. Under the statute, the defense may argue you bear some or all of the fault if one or several of the following circumstances apply:

• You did not use the product in a manner the manufacturer could foresee. A manufacturer or seller is only has to make a product safe for ways that they can expect a consumer to use it. For example, while chairs are meant for sitting, standing on one to reach something is common. So if a certain model of chair is dangerous to stand on, the manufacturer needs to include a warning not to stand on it. By contrast, if you are injured playing catch with a power tool or other sharp object, you likely do not have a claim because the manufacture would not reasonably foresee that use of the product.
• You used the product in a manner that was clearly against the manufacturer's intent. With this defense, Someone in the stream of commerce will not be able to entirely avoid fault but can considerably decrease it. Suppose you combine a certain medication with alcohol, producing negative side-effects or leading you to cause a car wreck. A pharmaceutical company could reasonably see someone doing that, but will not be completely responsible because you were being reckless.
• You used the product while aware of a reasonable level of danger associated with the use. This is often called as "Assumption of the risk," a theory in tort claims whereby, if the injured party was aware of risks, the defendant is not responsible. For instance, if the steering wheel on your vehicle was locking, you neglected to fix it and it caused you to get in an accident, your awareness of the defect and willingness to drive regardless would constitute an assumption of the risk.
• You displayed an unreasonable failure to appreciate the danger that a product's specific use could cause. For example, you were injured while snowmobiling at high speeds in a blizzard on icy surfaces. The defense could argue that the risk of doing so was obvious, and you should have known how dangerous it was.
• You did not take necessary safety precautions. Putting adequate warnings and safety instructions on a product's packaging can often protect someone in the stream of commerce from liability. If you were injured in a car accident because of faulty brakes, but you were not wearing your seatbelt, the defense can argue your injuries are your fault because you had not followed recommended precautions.
• You did not mitigate your damages. In any personal injury claim, you are expected to try to lessen the financial recovery you are owed. For example, you cannot seek compensation for medical treatment for injuries that occurred before the accident you are making a claim for. The defense may say they do not owe you for a portion of your damages because they are unnecessary or not relevant to the case.

Just because the defense can — and will — assert that you share part of the blame, that does not mean the claim is automatically true. Large corporations and insurance companies implement a variety of dishonest ruses to try and minimize your claim, but your Maryland Heights, MO defective products lawyer at Burger Law knows how to effectively counterattack. We know these large corporations will try everything to avoid paying you and try to take advantage of people who have never had to make an injury claim before. Our defective products lawyer team works on a contingency fee basis, which means our only fee is a moderate percentage of the compensation you are awarded, and you do not pay us anything until you get the great compensation you deserve. Call Burger Law today at (314) 500-HURT for legal representation that parallels and exceeds that of resistant corporations and insurance companies.

Defective Vehicle Parts Lawyer in Maryland Heights, MO

Our defective products lawyer team sees in Maryland Heights, MO sees more defective vehicles than any other product, both because of their ubiquity and because of how many components are involved. In 2019 alone, in excess of 53.1 million recalls were issued both for entire vehicles and individual components. Defective car parts can lead to crashes and fires, and lead to further injuries when the safety components to not function as they should. Common faulty car parts we see are:

• Brakes
• Airbags
• Ignitions
• Electrical systems
• Wheels
• Seats
• Engine cooling fan blades

Alternative vehicles like ATVs can also cause injuries, for instance many of them are prone to flipping over.

Your Burger Law defective products lawyer has extensive experience investigating car accident claims and injuries and will consult with experts to determine if your accident was the fault of a faulty vehicle component.

Defective Medical Devices Lawyer in Maryland Heights, MO

Medical devices are meant to improve the lives of the people who need them. But, sometimes they actually do the opposite and make our lives worse when they are defective. Examples of medical devices that your Burger Law defective products lawyer in Maryland Heights, MO has seen be defective include:

• Artificial joints that can result in infections, instability, pain or frequent dislocations
• Pacemakers, which can cause infections or even wrongful death because of premature failures
• Robotic surgical assistants designed to operate on parts of the body that are difficult for a surgeon to manually reach that, when defective, can cause punctured organs, infections and internal burns
• Blood clot filters that do not sufficiently protect the lungs from free-floating blood clots
• Permanent birth control implements that can pierce organs, cause pain in the pelvic region, excessive hemorrhaging and unplanned pregnancies

As the medical industry becomes more technologically advanced, the amount of recalls issued for medical devices has soared. In the first three months of 2018, medical device recalls increased 126 percent, mostly as a result of issues with software.

In 2017, the U.S. Health and Human Services Department reported that over 10 years Medicare had to spend at least $1.5 billion to replace over 73,000 flawed cardiovascular devices alone. We should not have to worry that these highly advanced medical devices might cause us immense pain instead of helping us. If a flawed medical device ended up aggravating your condition, your Maryland Heights, MO defective injuries lawyer at Burger Law will hold the liable parties accountable and make sure you collect a full financial recovery for all of the unneeded pain you experienced.

Earlier this year, Exactech, a company that manufactures implants and joint replacements, issued an Exactech Polyethylene Knee Replacement Recall. Because of flaws in their packaging and shipping process, the replacements deteriorate sooner than anticipated and have caused unthinkable pain and permanent damage to potentially as many as 150,000 patients who had received the replacement joint. When Burger Law was made aware of the defect by a client, we immediately filed suit on their behalf and continue to take on Exactech Knee Replacement cases. You can read the complaint we filed for our first client here:

View Complaint

Defective Drug Lawyer in Maryland Heights, MO

The Federal Drug Administration has stringent protocols for the testing, labeling, packaging and shipping of prescription drugs. However, the administration does not actually test drugs itself; rather, it relies on data from pharmaceutical companies' own testing to determine if a drug is safe for release to the public. With no absolute third-party testing many prescriptions reach the market whose potential side effects greatly outweigh their potential benefits. Too many pharmaceutical companies put profit over the safety of the people they are supposed to be helping. Currently, it is usually the pharmaceutical company's decision if they will recall a drug that has found to have dangerous side effects. One way to make sure dangerous prescriptions stay off the shelves: call a Burger Law defective products lawyer in Maryland Heights, MO to stand up to these bullying corporations and make them realize that their behavior is intolerable.

Four thousand five hundred drugs and medical devices are taken off the national market annually, and many of them have already been widely ingested and used. If you or a loved one received injuries because of reckless pharmaceutical companies and manufacturers, contact a Burger Law defective products injury lawyer immediately. We fight hard to see justice restored by winning you compensation and holding negligent corporations liable. Burger Law has already successfully filed suits for families against opioid manufacturers so they can have feel sense of justice for the wrongful death of their loved one.

Other examples of dangerous products we file suit for in Maryland Heights, MO include:

• Children's toys
• Chemicals such as week killer
• Baby powder
• Household appliances
• Industrial equipment
• Cell phone batteries
• Cosmetic products

Every Burger Law defective products lawyer in Maryland Heights, MO knows that being harmed by a faulty product can completely upend your life. That is why we endeavor to see the injured in Maryland Heights and throughout Missouri collect full compensation for all of their damages, not just what the product manufacturer or insurance company wants to pay. When you hire us, we immediately start working on getting you a financial recovery for all of your medical costs and lost wages, in addition to the emotional and physical toll your injury has inflicted on you and your Maryland Heights, MO family. You do not have to go through this alone, and the big corporations do not have to win every time. Call a Burger Law defective products lawyer in Maryland Heights, MO right away at (314) 500-HURT or contact us online to take the first step toward being made whole again.