legal 1/12/2020 11.) Car Accident, Construction Accident, Workers’ Comp, Defective Products – gtg

Our Law Firm Wants to Help You Understand What to do After a Car Wreck

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When the Defendant is a Non-Subscriber to Workers’ Comp, You Must Expect Anything!

Anyone who has been a construction employee for any length of time knows that this industry seems to attract more than its share of cheap employers who are more than willing to cut corners whenever possible. And as we have already told you, both construction worker’s comp injury compensation, as well as private insurance policies to cover non-subscribing construction contractors is particularly expensive due to the inherent dangers of the industry itself.

So it really comes as little surprise that many employers neglect to purchase workers’ comp or any form of liability insurance. Some of it can also be attributed to the high number of foreign workers on the lower tiers of all construction projects and the contractor’s general assumption that they will not call them to accounts if an accident injures one of them. So, if anyone hopes to receive the full compensation they deserve from non-subscribing employers, all workers in any industry certainly need the assistance of a skilled accident lawyer to investigate the accident thoroughly, file a lawsuit and see it through in order to secure that fair compensation for their injuries: including yours. In addition, the investigating attorney must investigate the employer’s assets (and level of insurance coverage if any is present). Because the simple fact of the matter is that it does an injured worker no good to sue someone who cannot afford to pay legitimate damages.

In order to further punish non-subscribing employers, the same workers’ comp laws enable the victim to ask for much greater damages than if the employer had purchased workers comp insurance. And since the construction accident victim must merely prove standard negligence, which means the employer only committed a sole error or momentary inability to maintain safety, job-related injury lawsuits can be generally easier to win. Even so, the laws governing these principles are not easy to understand. So in order to succeed you will need a crafty Texas construction accident lawyer to guide you through this challenging legal process.

It begins when the victim, also known as the plaintiff, files a claim with the employer (and insurance company), notifying him or her of the injury and the compensation the victim expects as fair reimbursement. The employer and insurer can agree but usually don’t. They might try to negotiate a settlement, or they’ll just dispute the claimant’s allegations outright. But if negotiations are successful then the case is settled, you win compensation and move on with your life. But most of the time, work- injury cases are contested and the claimant then becomes a plaintiff in a lawsuit to win the legal damages he or she deserves. As the injured party, the plaintiff holds the burden of proving that the employer’s negligence caused the injury, resulting in those high medical bills, lost salary, pain, and suffering. Fortunately for the injured victims, simple negligence is much easier to prove than gross negligence.

The experienced construction accident lawyers with our Law Firm help injured construction workers deal with their challenging work-injury cases. We have spent decades accumulating the expertise required to help you receive the compensation you deserve. Put our experience to work for you. We can tell you your rights, how to proceed with your claim, how much compensation you can secure and aggressively represent your case or claim to its final resolution: be it through successful negotiations or a favorable verdict in civil court.

Call our Law Firm now at 1(800) 862-1260 (toll-free), for a free consultation and find out how we can help you.

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The Most Popular Defense That Non-Subscribers Use to Avoid Paying for Your Injuries

If your employer doesn’t subscribe to workers’ comp and you sue for damages from your construction accident (or if you file a third-party lawsuit) he or she isn’t likely to panic and agree to pay you for the harm you’ve suffered due to their negligence. They’ll hire a lawyer and fight it, or hand it over to their insurance company for them to contest your lawsuit. Our experience in these matters has revealed that most non-subscribers try to use one of a couple of predictable defenses to avoid paying injured employees the restitution they deserve.

The primary defense afforded non-subscribers after an employee suffers an injury and files a lawsuit is to use the sole proximate cause defense. This is a defendant claim that the victim was completely to blame for his or her own injuries. In order to cite the sole proximate cause defense, non-subscribing employers and their attorneys will soil your good reputation (or that of your deceased family member if the lawsuit surrounds wrongful death) by trying to prove you were a negligent or reckless employee and caused your own injuries. They try to hold you alone responsible for them. And they’ll say anything they can to make their defense stick; whether it’s true or not.

You will likely need to disprove charges such as drug or alcohol use on the job, your good record as a conscientious worker, or other charges of reckless behavior. Your general character might be called into question when they say you beat your wife and kids or some other ridiculous defense that has one objective; to turn the spotlight of responsibility for the accident on you and away from their liable defendant. Experienced and shrewd defense attorneys know how to make victims appear responsible for their own injuries. You need your own crafty construction accident attorney to turn the tables back on them and place the blame squarely where it belongs, on the negligent employer.

The experienced construction accident lawyers with our Law Firm help injured construction workers deal with their challenging work-injury cases. We have spent decades accumulating the expertise required to help you receive the compensation you deserve. Put our experience to work for you. We can tell you your rights, how to proceed with your claim, how much compensation you can secure and aggressively represent your case or claim to its final resolution: be it through successful negotiations or a favorable verdict in civil court.

Call our Law Firm now at 1(800) 862-1260 (toll-free), for a free consultation and find out how we can help you.

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Defendants Who Question the Employer-Employee Relationship are Also Common

The sole proximate cause defense is not the only way non-subscribers use to avoid liability after an injury has been suffered by one of their employees. Many clever employers begin building this defense even before accidents occur by trying to distance themselves from you as an employee, and their responsibility to fairly compensate you.

Construction companies are not responsible for injuries to contractors. So many of them purposefully hire their employees and call them contractors; even if the facts don’t back-up such claims. By calling you a contractor, your employer can deny that an employer-employee relationship exists between the two of you and then they will tell the court that you don’t have a claim. Their logic is simple: Why should they be responsible for an injury to a person who was never their employee to begin with?

While many Texas construction companies might claim they hire their employees as contractors or as temp workers from someone else, in most cases the employer knows an actual employer-employee relationship usually exists and an injured worker has the right to obtain compensation. So don’t be misled by this blatant ruse. We certainly won’t.

Even though your employer claims you are a contractor, you may still be considered an employee in the eyes of the law and entitled to recover compensation for injuries you suffered on the job and other damages arising from the accident. A skillful and well-seasoned local construction accident lawyer knows how to prove the employer-employee relationship by meeting at least one of the following standards:

Social security or taxes have been withheld from your paycheck by the employer.
The essential equipment for the job was supplied to you by the employer.
Your work has been regularly managed, administered or inspected by your employer.
The employer has established a specific work schedule for the work you perform.
You are given specific hours to be on the construction site, or specific breaks and lunch periods. You are not free to come-and-go as you please.
Your employer requires you to complete a task or sign a document that limits your rights while working for the employer. The most common examples are taking a company-paid drug test or signing a document that states you comply with an employee handbook.
You have been employed for an undetermined period of time and not just for a single job.
You are paid a salary or an hourly wage and not on a job-by-job basis.
In cases where a worker is borrowed from another company, or a third-party agency, the rules for determining the working relationship are related, but there can be some crucial differences. Some of these conditions may include:

If the borrowing employer has the power to hire or fire a borrowed worker at any time, the worker is clearly an employee. Otherwise, the worker is a contractor.
Most of the time, if the borrowing employer is allowed to pick a particular worker, then the worker is an employee. If the agency that provides the worker is allowed to send any worker they choose, the worker is a contractor.
If the worker must provide his or her own tools, that person is a contractor. If the employer provides them, the worker is an employee.
If the agency can substitute the borrowed worker for another at-will, the worker is a contractor. If the lending agency cannot, then the worker is an employee.
If the worker is borrowed indefinitely, then the worker is an employee. If the worker is borrowed for a specific project with a specific date of completion, the worker is a contractor.
If a worker is being borrowed or “leased” because of a skill that is unique or hard-to-find, then the worker is a contractor. But on the other hand, if an employer borrows a worker to fill a position that just about anyone can fill, then the worker is an employee.
If the borrowing employer agrees to pay the worker’s social security and income tax, then the worker is an employee. If the borrowing employer does not accept this responsibility, then the worker is a contractor.
Our lawyers conduct a thorough investigation to demonstrate the existence of one of these standards and prove an employer-employee relationship existed for you. And if one can be established, your chances improve: if more than one, the odds of success rise dramatically. We depose co-workers, review contracts and examine pay stubs to establish that you were, in fact, an employee when you suffered your on-the-job construction injury.

Additionally, if you were hired by an employment agency or “loaned out” to another third party to work at another “employer’s” job site and suffered a workplace-related injury, your attorney must determine if the agency or third party has workers’ comp. If so, then you would file a workers’ comp claim against the agency, which would typically make the company where you actually performed the work a third-party to the accident.

And if your employer loaned you to another company, the same holds true if your employer subscribes to workers’ comp. You file a claim against your employer and a third-party insurance claim or lawsuit against the company where you suffered the injury, even if that employer is also a workers’ comp subscriber. Since you’re not an employee of that third party, workers’ comp doesn’t apply.

As we have previously told you, workers’ comp claims are less-than-adequate when major injuries are involved, including wrongful death. So the traditional way for an injured worker to receive fair damage compensation is to file a workers’ comp claim against the agency and supplement it with the appropriate number of third party claims or lawsuits. But many times we’ve seen both parties subscribe to workers’ comp, but give you the runaround as to who should pay out of workers’ comp. They’re hoping you won’t snap to this ruse. Sorting that out can be a real chore; one that’s best handled by an experienced workers’ comp attorney.

The experienced construction accident lawyers with our Law Firm help injured construction workers deal with their challenging work-injury cases. We have spent decades accumulating the expertise required to help you receive the compensation you deserve. Put our experience to work for you. We can tell you your rights, how to proceed with your claim, how much compensation you can secure and aggressively represent your case or claim to its final resolution: be it through successful negotiations or a favorable verdict in civil court.

Call our Law Firm now at 1(800) 862-1260 (toll-free), for a free consultation and find out how we can help you.

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Winning Your Non-Subscriber or Third Party Construction Accident Liability Case Can Be Very Tricky

In all of these construction injury cases, defendants can have large insurance companies and lots of attorneys to oppose you. Or they might be “self-insured” or uninsured. And though uninsured defendants might be too cheap to buy insurance, or post a bond to cover liability, they are more than willing to pay a defense attorney five figures to fight you in order to avoid paying your serious construction injury damages.

Insurance companies that cover non-subscribers have attorneys either on-staff or on permanent retainer. And they are very good at defending their clients from people like you who try to sue them. Insurance companies are confrontational and arrogant in protecting their money. But they can be beaten when you have an experienced local construction accident injury lawyer who knows how to counter every tricky card they play.

But as bad as the insurance companies can be in a construction injury claim or lawsuit, the self-insured defendant companies, or those that have no insurance at all are a different and very dangerous animal when cornered. You will be seeking a settlement with an officer of the self-insured company or maybe even directly from your employer he owns a small company. This person’s salary is tied directly to company profits. Whatever you are paid for an injury comes directly out of company assets. So by compensating you, your employer literally takes food out of his own mouth. We are rarely surprised when a sneaky, self-insured company officer uses any and all means for denying your claim in order to protect his company’s, and personal, assets. Some of them are downright illegal.

Self-insured companies and uninsured construction contractors can deliberately destroy evidence and bribe or intimidate witnesses, even you. They sometimes even resort to physical threats. This is why every time we represent a client against a self-insured or non-insured company, we quickly file motions in court that prevent any defendant from behaving inappropriately against our clients. Sometimes these motions include a clear demand that they make no attempt to communicate with our clients in any way without one of our attorneys present.

OSHA Is of Little Use in an Injury Liability Claim or Legal Case
You probably know of the federal Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA). This government agency maintains minimum standards of safety for all American employers. And you might think OSHA will help you attain compensation. Forget it. OSHA is not an advocate for injured workers. All it does is oversee the work environment in the U.S and keep statistics on safe (and unsafe) workplaces. So any evidence they might be able to supply your case will be anecdotal at best, and not very useful. Furthermore, for the past 30+ years, OSHA regulations, and the fines levied for non-compliance are little more than a nuisance to employers. They have no real teeth.

While OSHA sets safety standards in the workplace and fines transgressors, the fine amounts were established long ago. And in today’s economy, they and no longer carry the financial motivation that convinces safety violators to comply with these government standards. Many of these fine amounts are 25-30 years old. Inflation and other economic factors make most OSHA fines little more than a slap on the wrist. And over the years, OSHA has become virtually useless in preventing on-the-job injuries. OSHA is about as useful to your case as a sixth toe.

The experienced construction accident lawyers with our Law Firm help injured construction workers deal with their challenging work-injury cases. We have spent decades accumulating the expertise required to help you receive the compensation you deserve. Put our experience to work for you. We can tell you your rights, how to proceed with your claim, how much compensation you can secure and aggressively represent your case or claim to its final resolution: be it through successful negotiations or a favorable verdict in civil court.

Call our Law Firm now at 1(800) 862-1260 (toll-free), for a free consultation and find out how we can help you.

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Our Specialized Defective Product Attorneys Can Help if You’ve Been Injured by a Defective or Faulty Product

Every day people in all walks of life are injured simply when they use a defective product the way it was intended. Much of the time that injury is slight and it’s no big deal: but not always. If you have been seriously injured through the use of a defective or unsafe product you are within your rights to file a product liability lawsuit against the manufacturer of that product. But the best way to win your suit is with the help of Texas product liability lawyer our lead attorney and his associates at our Texas Law Firm. We can be your legal advocates and help you win the compensation you deserve.

Federal laws that govern companies who design and manufacture products are quite clear when dictating that they follow specific guidelines to make certain that every product they sell is safe, whether it’s a consumer or industrial product. If it is proven that the product is defective or unsafe to use, those who are seriously injured by these products can seek compensation for their injuries through a lawsuit against the manufacturers.

Generally, there are two types of product liability cases. One category directly involves negligence by the manufacturer. The other surrounds strict liability, which basically means that the product wasn’t a very good idea to begin with.

Deciding if the Product was Flawed in its Design or Manufacture is the First Step in Filing a Liability Case
Understanding a negligence product liability lawsuit is relatively simple. A manufacturer can be sloppy either in the way a product was designed or the manner in which it was manufactured. Deciding which of these two broad areas of the product development process is responsible for the failure of the device is important: and thereby the starting point of any defective product investigation. Once a manufacturer is judged to be legally liable in either the design or construction of the product, those who are injured by it must be compensated.

When a product is improperly designed, the reasons usually surround unacceptable regard for its safety when it is used as the product or device was intended. Maybe a substandard set of protective eyewear did not include proper thickness to account for the types of objects that it must guard the user’s eyes against, thereby causing it to shatter, resulting in damage to the wearer’s eyes and face. In such a case, the eyewear was likely manufactured properly. But the manner in which it was designed for its intended use was flawed. This can also include the materials called for in the design. They too might not have been calculated properly. In this case, the manufacturer was neglectful in designing the protective eyewear and can be held liable for any injuries that are caused by the use of the product in the manner intended.

But what if a product is designed properly, but still causes a serious injury? The focus then turns to the way the product was manufactured. Today, manufacturers find themselves cutting corners wherever they can in order to lower their costs and raise their profits. Their margins are often very thin to begin with. So saving a nickel for each manufactured unit can make a difference between profit and loss when 50,000 units of that particular product need to be delivered to the public. And search to find every way in which they can cut costs by using less-durable materials, or carelessly streamline the product assembly process. Or maybe they hire employees who don’t know their job as well as they should or allow uncertified workers to operate complicated manufacturing machinery because it means they can pay them a lower wage.

Regardless of the reason, whether there is negligence in the product’s design, or the way it was assembled, the manufacturer is legally liable for injuries resulting from normal use of an unsafe product. Proving your case, however, is another matter. And that is very difficult to do without an experienced Texas product safety attorney.

We only represent plaintiffs in defective product injury lawsuits. If you suspect you are suffering from injuries caused by a defective product, contact our Law Firm toll-free at 1(800) 862-1260. We provide a free, comprehensive and fully confidential legal consultation. We encourage you to ask all the questions you need in order to completely understand your injury case and how it is best pursued.

We deliver all of the legal leverage you need to force manufacturers of dangerous products to be responsible for their actions and compensate you.

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If You are Not Warned of a Product’s Dangers, Negligence Can Also be Proven

But there’s more to the issue of negligence when it comes to product liability. Manufacturers can be just as careless when they don’t meet their legal obligation to warn those who buy their products of the possible risks that can be connected to that product. Their failure to inform the public of these matters also makes them responsible for legal damages when people are seriously injured through the normal use of their product.

Did You Know?
Our Texas defective product attorneys have won thousands of cases. Call us today to discuss your case. 1(800) 862-1260

More and more we see product manufacturers warning their customers about the possible dangers of using their products. Drug manufacturers’ 30-second television commercials with 30 seconds of disclaimers are one example. Fine print at the bottom of advertisements in magazines and newspapers is another. Fast-talking announcers, who you can barely understand, during the last few seconds of a radio commercial are also complying with a manufacturer’s legal responsibility to warn customers of the risks associated with their product.

It’s safe to assume that all of these companies have either learned from direct experience or those of other manufacturers that they must warn their customers of the dangers that may be associated with their products: even if those dangers are remote. And it’s also quite possible this lesson was learned the hard way, at the end of a product liability lawsuit.

We only represent plaintiffs in defective product injury lawsuits. If you suspect you are suffering from injuries caused by a defective product, contact our Law Firm toll-free at 1(800) 862-1260. We provide a free, comprehensive and fully confidential legal consultation. We encourage you to ask all the questions you need in order to completely understand your injury case and how it is best pursued.

We deliver all of the legal leverage you need to force manufacturers of dangerous products to be responsible for their actions and compensate you.

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Strict Liability Claims: When Manufacturers Just say “DOH!”

Sometimes a manufacturer is diligent in designing and creating a product. But once it’s on the market, they discover – often too late – that it was simply a bad idea to begin with. This happens when many people begin to use it improperly, or in a manner not originally anticipated by the manufacturer. And because it’s used in a way the manufacturer did foresee, people end up being seriously injured by their product. Even if the manufacturer issues a recall, they are still legally responsible for their products that are still out in the public. A recall is not a universal shield from liability for those who suffer an injury by using a product. In other words, by issuing a recall, that doesn’t get them off the liability hook because anytime people are injured by this sort of product defect lawsuit may still be awarded damages through a strict liability claim.

One famous example of a product that fell under strict liability guidelines occurred when a company manufactured and sold a game called “Lawn Darts.” The object of this outdoor game was for players to throw large darts with sharp, pointed ends across a lawn toward some target on the ground. But it doesn’t take much imagination to understand how dangerous this game could be if used improperly, or the players aren’t paying attention to those hazardous missiles. One person’s “harmless” game dart can become another’s perilous weapon. And though the manufacturer quickly issued a recall and then changed the front end of the darts from a sharp pointed edge to a large suction cup, it didn’t relieve them of responsibility for damages from injuries that arose from this “game.”

This particular example is one of a product that’s designed and manufactured properly but is still an accident waiting to happen to the public, regardless of how it is used. This is a classic example of how an experienced Texas product safety lawyer applies a strict liability claim when a product on the market is unsafe. People are injured by well-made products every day that never should have been on the market to begin with. It makes no difference if they are used properly or improperly.

The product safety attorneys with our Law Firm understand the nuances of product liability law; and which statutes apply to each individual case. They can quickly determine the best choice among a variety of legal options that are open to you when it comes to a product liability lawsuit. And we will thoroughly investigate the matter and help you be fairly compensated for serious injuries suffered due to dangerous products.

We only represent plaintiffs in defective product injury lawsuits. If you suspect you are suffering from injuries caused by a defective product, contact our Law Firm toll-free at 1(800) 862-1260. We provide a free, comprehensive and fully confidential legal consultation. We encourage you to ask all the questions you need in order to completely understand your injury case and how it is best pursued.

We deliver all of the legal leverage you need to force manufacturers of dangerous products to be responsible for their actions and compensate you.

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Class Action Product Liability Suits: Isn’t it Better When The Lawyer That Knows You Represents You?

Today, if you watch any television at all, you certainly see numerous lawyer commercials who are “trolling for clients” who might have been seriously hurt because of some substandard product. Pharmaceuticals and other defective drugs are a popular target of these ads, though by no means the only object. But if you take time to read some of the fine print at the end of the commercial, you will notice that the lawyer you are supposed to call is in Florida or Delaware or some other state far from Texas.

This commercial is on behalf of a national class action product liability lawsuit that is filed and litigated in another state. A class-action suit is just what it sounds like. It involves a “class” of people, in this case, a group of people who have suffered an injury of either the same type, or at the hands of the same manufacturer, and are suing that manufacturer as a “class’ of plaintiffs. Class action suits have their advantages in some states because a large “class” of plaintiffs often gets to go to the front of the line when it comes to filing their case and being placed higher on the court’s docket. Then, when the class wins (or their lawyers have settled with the defendant manufacturer) they get to take a fair piece of a very large monetary compensation package. Some class-action suits have produced eight and even nine-figure injury awards. A class-action suit can be a remedy for you if you can find enough people who have suffered the same injuries or have the same manufacturer in their crosshairs, or are willing to be patient: sometimes for years. But it’s not easy money. Nor is it one of those situations where you just get on the filing list, hoping to get a nice payday when it’s all over.

The law firm that produced and aired the commercial will often recruit a firm or two in each state where the commercial appears because that lawyer who is filing the original suit is not licensed in Texas. Many times, these “front” attorneys in each state do virtually no work when it comes to preparing the case, but still, get a nice fee to do little more than “intake” work. The way we see it, such firms are really getting nothing more than a sales commission, not actual legal fees for doing real lawyering. All that these intake firms do is a preliminary interview of prospective plaintiffs to the class action suit, fill out forms, maybe take a deposition or two and get a “cut” of the legal fees for their minimal contribution to the lawsuit. And it is also possible the laws in the state where the case is filed might not translate all that well in Texas, or have certain restrictions that might place your particular case at a disadvantage than it would have had it rather been filed and argued in Texas: or even better, the Courthouse.

We are consistently, and often, approached by out of state class action firms to serve as their “legal second” in Texas. But we decline all offers unless we do actual legal work on behalf of our clients. We don’t shuffle papers and then take the fee. There’s a very simple reason why we don’t work this way. We represent clients. We don’t bird-dog for other law firms. There are synergistic elements to class action lawsuits that can make them very satisfying to the law firms that are truly involved and not just pushing papers (and clients) up someone else’s line. We also believe this kind of “faux legal representation” is not always ethical. Sometimes the out of state attorney-of-record might have the sort of reputation we are uncomfortable with. And we are all judged by the company we keep.

Our Law Firm has more than enough experience by ourselves to handle any class action product liability suit if it is appropriate. But we are better at it when we are the primary counsel of record. Who knows? through the help of a Texas defective product lawyer with our Law Firm, your case might be the first of what could become a class-action suit. We want you to know you will never be someone else’s number to us. So if you see a commercial that leads you to an out-of-state lawyer, remember what you might be getting into and call someone local. It’s always your best bet.

We only represent plaintiffs in defective product injury lawsuits. If you suspect you are suffering from injuries caused by a defective product, contact our Law Firm toll-free at 1(800) 862-1260. We provide a free, comprehensive and fully confidential legal consultation. We encourage you to ask all the questions you need in order to completely understand your injury case and how it is best pursued.

We deliver all of the legal leverage you need to force manufacturers of dangerous products to be responsible for their actions and compensate you.

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Suing Dangerous Product Manufacturers Without an Experienced Defective Product Attorney is a Very Risky proposition

In a way, those who pursue a product liability claim without competent legal counsel have about as much chance of winning compensation from the manufacturer as a Lawn Dart player. They end up getting stuck, and it hurts! When you become a product liability lawsuit plaintiff, you will very quickly find yourself up against not only the manufacturer who’s worried about profits, along with a courtroom full of excellent attorneys in $3,000 suits: as well as the manufacturer’s insurance company who is helping them. All work together to deny your claim.

The opposing attorneys use every trick in the book to convince a jury that your lawsuit has no merit. Or if the defendants end up being found guilty, that the damages you seek are excessive and unreasonable. They claim your lawsuit is frivolous even as they do everything they can to delay your day in court. But that doesn’t stop them from lowball-offering you so insignificant a settlement amount that it couldn’t possibly pay for the medical bills or other damages you are due, such as pain and suffering, lost wages and disability (if it applies) that the defective product caused you, or someone in your family; maybe even a small child.

Sometimes these manufacturers, lawyers, and insurance companies KNOW a product is as unsafe as you and your lawyer maintain. But that still doesn’t stop them from trying to frustrate you at every turn. If you fight them alone, or with an attorney who is not well-versed in product liability law, you do it at you and your family’s grave risk. So, isn’t your best strategy one that involves retaining competent legal counsel who has experience in matters surrounding defective product lawsuits, and can counter all of the tactics that defendants, their insurance companies and lawyers use to defeat your liability case?

We only represent plaintiffs in defective product injury lawsuits. If you suspect you are suffering from injuries caused by a defective product, contact our Law Firm toll-free at 1(800) 862-1260. We provide a free, comprehensive and fully confidential legal consultation. We encourage you to ask all the questions you need in order to completely understand your injury case and how it is best pursued.

We deliver all of the legal leverage you need to force manufacturers of dangerous products to be responsible for their actions and compensate you.

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Statute of Limitations: and the Exceptions When it Comes to Product Liability

A statute of limitations spells out the period of time during which legal action can be taken in a civil matter. In most product liability cases, the plaintiffs have a two-year statute of limitations to file. Essentially, that means that the claim must be resolved within that two year period from the time of death OR a lawsuit must be filed within that same two year period. There is no two-year statute for the matter to be adjudicated and often it can take four, five, or as many as 10 years for such cases to be resolved. And it’s a pretty good bet that if someone files a seven-figure defective product lawsuit, it will take many years to settle. But when it comes to the more normal such cases, usually involving much less than $1 million, it doesn’t take nearly that long.

There are, however, a few exceptions to the two-year statute of limitations. Below are four of the most common exceptions.

A wrongful death claim on behalf of a minor child in a product safety lawsuit can not expire until after the child is of legal age. The two-year statute of limitations, therefore, does not start to count down until the child’s 18th birthday. For example, if a 15-year-old child lost their father in a defective drug lawsuit, that child’s claim would be extended until two years after they are of legal age (their 20th birthday). Generally, a minor child has no legal standing to file any civil suit in Texas until they turn 18.

Another example surrounds the length of time it might take to determine that a product is defective. Imagine, for example, that a person takes a drug and dies due to complications from taking that drug. Then, ten years after this death it is determined that the drug was defective and that this defect ended up being the direct (or underlying) cause of that loved one’s death. One of the decedent’s family members – typically the spouse – would more than likely be able to then file a claim even though the standard two-year window had expired eight years before. The idea behind this is that the plaintiff did not know that they had a case until years later: which would, therefore, extend the statute of limitations.

Also, in cases where the defendant deliberately concealed their involvement or culpability in a death, the statute may be extended to allow the injured victim, or the deceased family member if the product killed someone, to pursue civil action against the defendant. In some situations, this concealment may be criminal. Or the concealment may have been part of a larger criminal enterprise. When this happens, the defendant may also be subject to criminal charges in addition to civil charges. And when a defendant must answer criminal charges as well, it invariably strengthens that criminal case, even if the defendant is ultimately exonerated in criminal court. Think of all those tobacco lawsuits. This exception is what keeps them alive still to this day.

And finally, if a plaintiff has suffered some physical or mental incapacity that keeps them from responding within the standard two-year statute of limitations, the statute may be extended to accommodate the defendant. For example, if a man is hit in the head and suffers a debilitating injury because of a substandard protective hard hat and goes into a coma for three years, his statute of limitations would likely be extended due to the fact that he was mentally or physically incapacitated and was unable to pursue a defective product claim if he had no immediate family to file the claim or lawsuit on his behalf.

Our Experienced Product Liability Lawyers Help You Win Damages
The Texas defective product lawyers with our Law Firm have helped many people who have been hurt by unsafe and defective products for decades. We know all the tricks that manufacturers and their attorneys play in order to prevent you from collecting the damages you deserve once we understand that your injury justifies bringing such a liability claim

We thoroughly investigate every case in order to make it as strong as possible. We depose witnesses, pursue detailed forensic evidence, and research similar cases involving the product or the manufacturer. We are exclusively dedicated to helping you recover, both physically and financially, by getting the largest, and fairest, damage award possible. Our defective product attorneys have a long track record of successfully representing our clients, not only in court but negotiating fitting and fair settlements without the need to litigate. And because most of these opposing lawyers know us and our reputation for aggressively representing our clients, many of them would rather settle than take us on in a courtroom.

We only represent plaintiffs in defective product injury lawsuits. If you suspect you are suffering from injuries caused by a defective product, contact our Law Firm toll-free at 1(800) 862-1260. We provide a free, comprehensive and fully confidential legal consultation. We encourage you to ask all the questions you need in order to completely understand your injury case and how it is best pursued.

We deliver all of the legal leverage you need to force manufacturers of dangerous products to be responsible for their actions and compensate you.

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