Product recalls and product liability litigation: looking at the connection, P.1

Companies recall products all the time for various reasons. In the last week, for example, a number of product recalls were issued, including three models of Coleman flashlights, a Rollerblade inline skating safety helmet, two models of Yamaha off-highway vehicles, three models of Fisher-Price cradle swings, Outdoor Gourmet marinade injectors, a model of a Staples and Quill office chair, and a Miniland Educational plush fastening toy.

Some of the recalls were issued after safety incidents had been reported, though none of the recent batch of recalls were issued in response to any injuries. This isn’t always the case. When companies are responsible, they do enough pre-market safety development and respond quickly enough to post-market safety concerns that the harm to consumers is kept to a minimum. In some cases, though, companies fail to reveal the risks their products post and choose instead to benefit from market demand, or fail to respond responsibly to product failures.

For consumers who are harmed by a defective product, the primary concern is addressing the injuries themselves, and then seeking just compensation from parties responsible for the injury. In some cases, it may be possible to settle privately over defective product injuries, but obtaining just compensation is only possible in some cases by pursuing litigation.

Litigation can, of course, be time consuming and costly, and it is important for anybody injured by a defective or improperly marketed product to consult with an experienced product liability attorney to have their case evaluated and determine the best course of action.

In future posts, we’ll look a bit at the connection between product recalls and product liability litigation.

Sources:

New York State Bar Association, “Litigating the Products Liability Case: Law and Practice,” Nov. 2013.

Jones Day, “Product Recalls: Anticipating the Product Liability Lawsuits,” Feb. 2012.