Defective Products Lawyer in Phelps County, MO.

Defective Products Lawyer in Phelps County, MO. If you or someone you care about was harmed by a dangerous product, call a Burger law defective products lawyer in Phelps County, MO now at (314) 500-HURT or fill out our online form for a free case evaluation.

Imagine what you do every day: You may have put on some lotion or hair gel in the morning, take a prescription, go to school or work on your bike, sit by a computer or work around heavy machinery, and/or use your android throughout the day. You may drive go-carts on the weekend. You may even have a knee replacement or other medical device. It seems we're always using or surrounded by some sort of product that at one point was designed, manufactured, shipped and bought. When there is a mistake in that process and a product becomes dangerous, it can have a disastrous effect on on your life and lives of those you love in Phelps County, MO. If tragedy struck you, you need the skilled and committed legal representation of Burger Law's defective products lawyer team to fight on your behalf and secure you the full compensation you deserve.

In our In our 30 years of experience fighting for fairness and justice, we have secured our clients in Phelps County and throughout Missouri more than $170 million. Talking to us is free, so there's no reason to wait. Call a defective products lawyer in Phelps County, MO today at (314) 500-HURT.

If you were hurt by a dangerous product in Phelps County, MO, find out the true value of your case by filling out our free personal injury calculator.



Below are some useful links and FAQS from your Burger Law defective products injury lawyer in Phelps County, 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 Phelps County, MO?

The Consumer Product Safety Commission estimates that defective products account for in excess of 29 million injuries and 21,000 deaths every year.

Based on data 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 unbelievable devastation an unsafe product can cause.

If you were one of the many people injured by a dangerous product, call a Burger Law defective products lawyer in Phelps County, MO for understanding, dedicated and talented support and legal representation.

How Defective Products Claims Work in Phelps County, MO

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

1. The corporation was part of the product's stream of commerce.
2. The product was used in a way rationally foreseen.
3. Either or both of the following conditions:
   1. The product had a defective condition that was unreasonably hazardous when it left the manufacturer's or vendor's that caused you direct harm, and/or
   2. Your injuries stemmed from a dangerous condition inherent in the product that was not warned of in the labeling or instructions.

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

• You discover who the manufacturer is, it still exists and is financially capable of paying you for the entirety of your injuries.
• The distributor signs an affidavit under oath that they had nothing to do with the product beyond selling it.
• There is no evidence is brought in front of the court that the distributor was involved in any other aspect of the chain of distribution.
• The dismissal is requested to the judge no later than 60 days after the complaint is filed.

If those conditions are fulfilled, the vendor would then be dismissed without prejudice, which means the dismissal is temporary at first. So, if later evidence proves that they were actually involved in the design or manufacture of the product, were otherwise responsible for the fault or the manufacturer is unable to pay for the entirety of your damages, your defective products lawyer at Burger Law would have them re-entered into the claim and ensure that every at-fault 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 hit the shelves. This defense is only applicable to for inadequate warning product liability lawsuits, and it is up to the defense to prove that there is no way they could have known about the dangerous condition.

Strict Liability and Negligence in Defective Products Claims: What's the Difference?

The majority of personal injury suits in Phelps County, MO depend on the concept 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 example if if there a loose floor boards at a restaurant that cause you to fall they might be found responsible for your damages and would have to pay you compensation.

However, most product liability or defective products cases are strict liability claims, meaning that a designer, manufacturer or vendor is at fault 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 Phelps County, 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 — when it left the manufacturer's or distributor's control.

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 flaw in the design that subsequently affects all of that product model that go on to be manufactured. An example is an electrical appliance that can overheat and cause fires.
2. Manufacturing Defects: This refers to a product that was safe in its design but became unsafe because of mistakes in the manufacturing process. This can either only make one product dangerous, for example, one can of soda may have a bug in it, or all of them may contain potentially hazardous chemicals. An example could be installing outdated components or a swing set with a cracked chain.
3. Inadequate Warnings and Instructions: This refers to a product made it through design and production safely but caused injury because it did not give adequate instructions or warnings about inherent risks. Examples include a drug that is sold without mentioning certain risks or side effects 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 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 meant to hold corporations accountable and persuade them to implement comprehensive safety procedures for verifying the safety of their products. However, too often companies do not respect their obligation to make safe products and try to focus more on their bottoms line than ensuring their products will not cause any damage. In those cases, your Burger Law defective products lawyer in Phelps County, MO will hold them accountable by conducting a full investigation of your case and demanding nothing but maximum compensation.

Comparative Negligence in Defective Productions Claims in Phelps County, MO

Manufacturers, sellers and anyone else in the chain of distribution will often rely on the concept of comparative negligence when building their defense. Missouri Revised Statute §537.765 permits for the defendants to put forth the defense that you are liable for a portion of the fault and, therefore, they are not liable for your full financial recovery. For example, if a jury determines that you have $100,000 in damages but finds you were 30 percent at fault 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 get out their responsibility to pay you for the damage their product did to you. Your Phelps County, 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 are present in your case:

• You did not use the product in a manner the manufacturer could foresee. A manufacturer or vendor is only has to make a product safe for ways that they can expect the public to use it. For example, while chairs are meant to be sat on, 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 use a loaded shotgun to prop a door open and it misfires, you likely do not have a claim because the manufacture would not reasonably foresee that happening.
• 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 liability but can considerably reduce it. Say you combine a certain medication with alcohol, producing negative side-effects or leading you to cause an auto collision. A pharmaceutical company could reasonably see someone doing that, but will not be completely responsible because you were being reckless.
• You knew of inherent hazards of the product while you were using it. This is often referred to 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 say that any reasonable person would have known that they could be seriously hurt doing such a thing.
• You neglected to follow safety guidelines. Putting adequate warnings and safety instructions on a product's packaging 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 have a duty to try to lessen the financial recovery you are owed. For example, you cannot refuse to return to work when you are healthy enough to do so. The defense may say you have no right to ask them for money they do not owe you.

Just because the defense 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 use a variety of deceitful tactics to try and lower your claim, but your Phelps County, MO defective products lawyer at Burger Law knows how to combat them. We know these companies are unfair and try to take advantage of people who have never had to make an injury claim before. All you will ever owe is a contingency fee, which means our only fee is a moderate percentage of the financial recovery you get, and you do not pay us anything until we win your case. Get in touch with Burger Law immediately at (314) 500-HURT for legal counsel that parallels and eclipses that of resistant corporations and insurance companies.

Defective Vehicle Parts Lawyer in Phelps County, MO

Defective vehicles are the most common type of product liability that our defective products lawyer team sees in Phelps County, MO. In 2019 alone, over 53.1 million individual cars and vehicle components were recalled in the United States. Defective car parts can cause crashes and fires, and lead to further injuries when the safety components to not work as they should. Common dangerous motor vehicle components we see are:

• Brakes
• Airbags
• Fuel systems
• Electrical systems
• Tires
• Seats
• Accelerators

Alternative vehicles like 4-wheelers can also cause damage, for instance if a design defect gives them a heightened propensity 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 Phelps County, MO

We trust medical devices to enhance and extend our lives. But, sometimes they actually do the opposite and make our lives worse when not manufactured, shipped or installed correctly. Examples of medical devices that your Burger Law defective products lawyer in Phelps County, MO has seen cause further injuries to patients are:

• Artificial joints that can result in infections, instability, chronic soreness or frequent dislocations
• Pacemakers, which can cause infections or even wrongful death because of premature failures
• Robotic surgical assistants intended to operate on parts of the body that are difficult for a surgeon to manually reach that, when defective, can result in pierced organs, infections and electrical burns
• Blood clot filters that permit free-floating blood clots to slip into the lungs
• Permanent birth control implements that can perforate organs, result in pain in the pelvic region, excessive bleeding and unintended pregnancies

As the medical industry becomes more high-tech, the amount of recalls issued for medical devices has skyrocketed. In the first three months of 2018, medical device recalls increased 126 percent, mostly due to defects in software.

In 2017, the U.S. Health and Human Services Department announced that over the span of 10 years Medicare paid out at least $1.5 billion to replace in excess of 73,000 defective cardiovascular devices alone. We should not have to worry that these highly technological medical devices might cause us immense pain instead of improving our lives. If a defective medical device caused you damages, your Phelps County, MO defective injuries lawyer at Burger Law will hold the liable parties accountable and make sure you receive a full financial recovery for all of the unneeded pain you experienced.

In February of this year, Exactech, a manufacturer of joint replacements, issued an Exactech Polyethylene Knee Replacement Recall. Because of oversights in their packaging and shipping process, the replacements do not last nearly as long as they were built to and have caused incredible pain and lifelong damage to possibly as many as 150,000 people who were depending on the replacement joint to return their mobility. When Burger Law was retained by a client, we immediately got to work bringing them what peace of mind we could and are taking on more Exactech Knee Replacement cases to this day. You can view our original complaint here:

View Complaint

Defective Drug Lawyer in Phelps County, MO

The Federal Drug Administration has strict protocols for the testing, labeling, packaging and shipping of prescription drugs. However, the administration uses data from the pharmaceutical companies themselves when deciding whether or not to allow the drug to hit the shelves. That means that many prescriptions reach the market without an objective analysis of the potential drawbacks compared to the 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 Phelps County, MO to stand up to these bullying corporations and make them realize that their behavior is unacceptable.

Hundreds of thousands of drugs and medical devices are recalled in the U.S. annually, and many of them have already been widely ingested and used. If you or a family member received injuries because of reckless pharmaceutical companies and manufacturers, call a Burger Law defective products injury lawyer immediately. We fight hard to see justice restored by securing you compensation and holding negligent corporations responsible. Burger Law has already successfully won claims for families against opioid manufacturers so they can have some sense of justice for the wrongful death of their loved one.

Other examples of dangerous products we file suit for in Phelps County, MO include:

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

Every Burger Law defective products lawyer in Phelps County, MO knows that when manufacturers and vendors fail to make safe products it can completely upend your daily routine, your family and even your present and future financial security. That is why we endeavor to see the vulnerable in Phelps County and throughout Missouri be compensated for all of their damages, not just what the product manufacturer or insurance company feel like reimbursing you for. When you hire us, we immediately start working on delivering you a financial recovery for all of your medical bills and lost wages, as well as the mental and physical toll your injury has inflicted on you and your Phelps County, 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 Phelps County, MO immediately at (314) 500-HURT or contact us online to start on the path to a true recovery.