Marc Whitehead & Associates

Understanding Product Liability Law:
Did a Defective or Poorly Designed Product Hurt You or Someone in Your Family?

Texas product liability law is vastly complicated. It holds more surprises and nuances than most consumers realize. Whether your 4-year-old nearly lost two of his fingers when a broken toy cut him; your truck zigzagged off the road when your steering column suddenly failed; or your uncle suffered a catastrophic allergic reaction to a diabetes medication his doctor gave him, your mind is probably racing with questions, such as:

• Who can I hold legally responsible for what happened?
• What kind of compensation might I be able to get?
• Do I have a product liability case at all, or am I “blowing things out of proportion” like my friend said?
• How do I choose the right Houston product liability lawyer? There seem to be literally thousands of them competing for my attention online.
• Who should or shouldn’t I speak to about what happened?
• What kind of documentation should I be collecting now to improve my chances for filing a successful lawsuit?

Detailed Answers to Your Questions about Your Possible Product Liability Case

In any personal injury case, in order to hold a person, insurance company, corporation, or other party legally responsible to pay for your damages (e.g. reconstructive surgery, lost current and future wages, pain and suffering, cost of replacing a damaged product, etc), you generally need to build something called a cause-and-effect argument. In other words, you must show that the wrongdoer committed an act of negligence or carelessness – or in some other way violated an obligation to you. And then you need to show how this failure ultimately led to your injuries or damages.

If that’s all a little too abstract, let’s take a look at an example to help you get a better and deeper understanding for what goes on.

Example Product Liability Case: Defective Tire

Consider the case of a 47-year-old woman, who suffers a tire blowout while on the freeway. The resulting severe accident paralyzes her on her left side and demolishes her vehicle. Who might be responsible for paying for her damages?

Let’s just assume that the blown-out tires caused the accident. Even still, any number of parties could be liable:

• Maybe her mechanic put on the wrong tires for her vehicle’s make and model.
• Maybe the tires themselves were defective, in which case she might want to join a class action lawsuit against the tire manufacturer.
• Maybe she overfilled the tires with air, in which case she would be partially culpable…
• ...unless, of course, the tires’ manual contained an error, in which case the liability might shift once again…

In other words, the details of the tire blowout matter tremendously. And that’s why Texas personal injury lawyers and product liability lawyers often need to explore cases in great detail – often launching independent investigations – to get their clients the best results.

How to Get Help to Move Things Forward

Think of all of the questions that you have on your mind – all of the urgent concerns you face. For example, you probably already know that, if you don’t take action quickly, you might lose key evidence, misremember the precise chain of events that led to the injury, and even allow the statute of limitations in your case to elapse.

The proven team at Marc Whitehead & Associates can provide a free case evaluation regarding your possible product liability case.

When we help personal injury victims in Texas and throughout the U.S., we take these cases on contingency basis. This means that our firm funds the costs of investigations and other costs, so you only pay if and when we win a verdict or settlement for you. Learn how we can help you at www.personal-injurylawyer.com, or call to ask us questions or set up your appointment today: 800-562-9830.

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