Defective Products Lawyer in Ozark, MO.

Defective Products Lawyer in Ozark, MO. If you or a loved one sustained an injury because of a dangerous product, call a Burger law defective products lawyer in Ozark, MO today at (314) 500-HURT or fill out our online form for a complimentary case evaluation.

Picture your daily routine: You may have a skincare routine or put on some hair gel in the morning, take a prescription, go to school or work on your bike, sit at in a chair or work around heavy machinery, and/or use your android throughout the day. You may use lawnmowers on the weekend. You may even have a ankle replacement or other medical device. It seems we're always using or surrounded by some sort of product that has gone through various stages of design and production before it reaches the buyer. When there is a breakdown in the stream of commerce and a product becomes defective, it can cause serious harm to you and your Ozark, MO family. When that happens to you, you need the skilled and committed legal representation of Burger Law's defective products lawyer team to stand in your corner and secure you the best possible financial recovery you deserve.

In our In our 30 years of experience fighting for the rights of the injured and vulnerable, we have gotten our clients in Ozark and beyond more than $170 million. Talking to us is free, so there's no reason to wait. Get in touch with a defective products lawyer in Ozark, MO immediately at (314) 500-HURT.

If you were injured by a faulty product in Ozark, MO, find out the true value of your case by using our complimentary personal injury calculator.



The following are some helpful links and FAQS from your Burger Law defective products injury lawyer in Ozark, 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?

Ozark, MO Defective Products Statistics

The Consumer Product Safety Commission states that defective products cause more than 29 million injuries and 21,000 deaths each year.

According to statistics from the Insurance Information Institute, in 2019 the mean average that juries awarded plaintiffs in product liability claims was over $7 million, while the median was $2 million. That shows the extreme ruin an unsafe product can cause.

If you or someone you know was harmed by a hazardous product, call a Burger Law defective products lawyer in Ozark, MO for understanding, devoted and expert support and legal representation.

How Defective Products Claims Work in Ozark, MO

According to Missouri Revised Statute §537.760, you and your Ozark, MO defective products lawyer can file a "strict liability" suit if three conditions are met:

1. The corporation was part of the product's chain of distribution.
2. You used the product in a way reasonably expected.
3. Either or both of the following conditions:
   1. The product was in a faulty condition that was unreasonably hazardous when you bought the product that caused you direct harm, and/or
   2. The manufacturer or distributor failed to warn on the products packaging of an inherently dangerous condition.

The "stream of commerce" refers to anyone that took part in the product coming to fruiting and hitting the shelves, from initial design to sale, including a distributor or vendor. According to Missouri Revised Statute §5537.762, an entity sold the product but were not involved in the design or manufacture of it can be dismissed from the suit if:

• You discover who the manufacturer is, it has not closed their business and is financially capable of reimbursing you for the entirety of your damages.
• The seller makes an affidavit under oath that their only involvement in the stream of commerce was selling it.
• There is no evidence is presented to the court that the seller was involved in any other aspect of the chain of distribution.
• The motion to dismiss is filed within 60 days.

If those conditions are met, the vendor would then be dismissed without prejudice, meaning they are not permanently dismissed from the case. So, if later evidence demonstrates that they had a larger role in the engineering of the product than they implied, were otherwise to blame for the hazardous condition or the manufacturer is unable to compensate you for all of your damages, your defective products lawyer at Burger Law would have them re-entered into the claim and ensure that every liable party is held accountable.

Missouri Revised Statute §537.764 has an exception for "state of the art products," meaning that a hazardous aspect of the product was not known and could not be discovered when the product went to market. This defense is only valid for failure to warn defective products cases, and the burden of proof is on the defense.

Negligence vs. Strict Liability in Defective Products Cases

Most personal injury lawsuits in Ozark, MO are won or lost based on the concept of negligence. We all owe each other a duty of care in certain situations; for example, drivers must drive in a way that's safe for other people on the Ozark, MO roads. When someone fails in that responsibility, for instance if you sustain a dog bite are because a dog owner didn't properly leash their dog they may be held responsible for your damages and would be obligated to reimburse you for your injuries and other damages.

By contrast, most product liability or defective products cases come down to strict liability, meaning that anyone involved in the manufacture and sale of a product is liable for any injuries a product causes, whether they were negligent or not. 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 Ozark, 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 got into your hands.

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 inherent fault in the design that subsequently affects all of that product model that go on to be manufactured. An example is a piece of clothing that is easily flammable.
2. Manufacturing Defects: This refers to a product that was safe in its design but became unsafe because of a failure in the manufacturing process. This can either only make one product defective, 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 a tainted batch of something intended for drinking containing a poisonous substance.
3. Inadequate Warnings and Instructions: This refers to a product that was designed and manufactured safely but caused injury because it did not give proper instructions or warnings about innate dangers. Examples include a drug that is sold without mentioning certain risks or side effects or not advising an appropriate age range for children if a toy or game is a choking hazard. The company that makes a product generally does not have to warn against risks that a reasonable person would anticipate. For example, they do not have to warn you that a match could start a fire.

Strict liability is intended to hold corporations accountable and persuade them to implement comprehensive safety procedures for guaranteeing the safety of their products. Even so, too often corporations do not value our safety and spend more energy on cutting costs than ensuring their products will not cause any damage. In those cases, your Burger Law defective products lawyer in Ozark, MO will fight on your behalf and insist on nothing but the maximum financial recovery.

Comparative Negligence in Defective Productions Claims in Ozark, MO

An oft-used defense for manufacturers in a product liability lawsuit is that you are to blame for all or a portion of your damages. Missouri Revised Statute §537.765 allows for the manufacturer or seller to posit that you are liable for a portion of the fault and, therefore, they are not liable for the full extent of your damages. For example, if a jury awards you $100,000 but finds you were 30 percent to blame for the accident, your total compensation will only be $70,000. Often, claims of comparative fault are a disingenuous attempt an entity involved in the chain of distribution makes to avoid their responsibility to reimburse you for the damage their product did to you. Your Ozark, MO defective products lawyer at Burger Law will not let them get away with it. The statute allows for the defense of comparative fault if the following situations apply:

• You did not use the product in a way the manufacturer could foresee. A manufacturer or seller is only responsible for ensuring the product is safe for reasonable or predictable use. 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. On the other hand, if you use a loaded rifle to prop a door open and it misfires, you likely do not have a claim because the manufacture would not be expected to foresee that use of the product.
• You used the product in a way that was clearly against the manufacturer's intent. With this defense, Someone in the stream of commerce will not be able to entirely avoid liability but can considerably reduce it. Suppose you combine a certain medication with alcohol, producing negative side-effects or leading you to cause a car accident. 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 a plaintiff knowingly enters into a dangerous activity, the defendant is not responsible. For instance, you understand that using a sharp kitchen knife can cut you if you are not extremely careful.
• You did not appreciate the dangers of a certain product or activity when a reasonable person clearly would have. 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 neglected to take necessary safety precautions. Putting adequate warnings and safety instructions on a product's labeling can often protect someone in the chain of distribution from liability. If you took more doses of a medication than the labeling or your doctor suggested, the defense can argue your injuries would have been avoided had you adhered to recommended precautions.
• You did not try to keep your damages to a minimum. In any personal injury claim, you are expected to try to lessen the financial recovery you are owed. For example, you cannot seek unnecessary medical treatment. 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 people in the chain of distribution can — and will — try to convince the court that you share part of the blame, that does not mean they will be successful. Powerful corporations and insurance companies employ a variety of tricks to try and devalue your claim, but your Ozark, MO defective products lawyer at Burger Law knows how to effectively counterattack. We know these companies are unfair 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 we collect a moderate percentage of the financial recovery you get, and we do not collect any attorney's fees until you get the great compensation you deserve. Reach out to Burger Law now at (314) 500-HURT for legal counsel that parallels and surpasses that of bullying manufacturers and vendors and insurance companies.

Defective Vehicle Parts Lawyer in Ozark, MO

Defective vehicles are the most common type of product liability that our defective products lawyer team sees in Ozark, MO. In 2019 alone, over 53.1 million recalls were issued both for entire vehicles and individual components. Defective car parts can cause collisions and fires, and fail to protect drivers and passengers from harm as intended. Common dangerous car parts we see are:

• Brakes
• Airbags
• Fuel systems
• Windshield wipers
• Tires
• Door latches
• Headlights and taillights

Alternative vehicles like ATVs can also cause injuries, for instance many of them are prone to rolling 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 Ozark, MO

Medical devices are intended to improve the lives of the people who need them. But, sometimes they actually do the opposite and cause us even more injuries when they are defective. Common medical devices that your Burger Law defective products lawyer in Ozark, MO has seen cause further injuries to patients are:

• Artificial hips, knees or other joints that can result in infections, instability, pain or repeated dislocations
• Cardiovascular devises, which can result in infections or even wrongful death when they do not last as long as anticipated
• Robotic surgical assistants intended to operate on parts of the body that are difficult for a surgeon to manually reach that, when they malfunction, can result in perforated 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, result in pelvic pain, abnormal hemorrhaging and unintended pregnancies

As the medical industry becomes more high-tech, medical device recalls have skyrocketed. In the first three months of 2018, medical device recalls rose by 126 percent, mostly because of defects in software.

In 2017, the U.S. Health and Human Services Department stated that over a decade Medicare paid out at least $1.5 billion to replace more than 73,000 flawed cardiovascular devices alone. Medical devices should help ease pain and lengthen our lifespans, not cause further damage. If a flawed medical device ended up worsening your condition, your Ozark, MO defective injuries lawyer at Burger Law will fight for your right to be compensated when your trust was betrayed.

Earlier this year, Exactech, a manufacturer of joint replacements, issued an Exactech Polyethylene Knee Replacement Recall. Because of mistakes in their packaging and shipping process, the replacements deteriorate sooner than anticipated and have caused incredible pain and lifelong damage to potentially as many as 150,000 patients who had received the replacement joint. When Burger Law was retained by a client, we immediately got to work bringing them what peace of mind we could and continue to take on Exactech Knee Replacement cases. You can view our original complaint by clicking the link below:

View Complaint

Defective Drug Lawyer in Ozark, MO

The Federal Drug Administration has strict procedures 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. That means that many medications reach the market without an objective analysis of the potential drawbacks compared to the potential benefits. Too many corporations care more about the money they make more than the safety of the people they are supposed to be helping. Currently, recalling a drug is largely voluntary. One way to make sure dangerous prescriptions stay off the shelves: call a Burger Law defective products lawyer in Ozark, MO to stand up for the vulnerable and let these corporations know that their conduct is intolerable.

Hundreds of thousands of drugs and medical devices are taken off the national market annually, and that is often after many people have already turned to them for treatment and relief. If you or a family member received injuries because of careless pharmaceutical companies and manufacturers, reach out to a Burger Law defective products injury lawyer immediately. We protect the rights of the injured and vulnerable and make sure negligent corporations know how much damage they have caused. Burger Law has already held opioid manufacturers accountable when their selfishness has taken someone from their family too soon.

Other examples of dangerous products we collect compensation for our clients for in Ozark, MO include:

• Children's toys
• Chemicals such as cleaning products
• Baby powder
• Household appliances
• Industrial equipment
• Cell phone batteries
• Beauty products

Every Burger Law defective products lawyer in Ozark, MO knows that being hurt by a hazardous product can completely upend your life. That is why we strive to see the vulnerable in Ozark and throughout Missouri receive great compensation for all of their damages, not just what the product manufacturer or insurance company wants to pay. When you hire us, we do not hesitate to start working on securing you a financial recovery for all of your medical costs and lost wages, in addition to the mental and physical hardships your injury has inflicted on you and your Ozark, 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 Ozark, MO now at (314) 500-HURT or contact us online to take the first step toward a true recovery.