Are Meritor WABCO Air Brake Modulator Valves Dangerous?
This past Friday, a wrongful death suit was filed in Alabama on behalf of Jordan Mays Matson. Ms. Matson lost her life October 20, 2015 in a collision with an 18-wheeler. What makes this lawsuit different from a typical 18-wheeler wrongful death suit is that in addition to the truck driver and trucking company, a...
Johnson & Johnson Loses Third Talcum-Powder Cancer Trial, Pays Out $70 Million
Last week on Thursday, October 27, multinational conglomerate Johnson & Johnson lost its third consecutive trial with respect to its allegedly-carcinogenic talcum powder products. After three long hours of deliberations, a jury awarded the plaintiff the sizable sum of $70 million, the third such award granted to a plaintiff in these proceedings. Specifics of the...
Space Inflamers: Defective Space Heaters Can Cause Fires and Injury
When temperatures plunge, many search for a cost-effective alternative to turning on the central heating system: space heaters. Small, localized sources of heat that give you the warmth you're looking for without wasting the energy it takes to heat parts of your home you're not occupying. With a variety of colors and styles to choose...
McDonald’s Recalls Step-It Fitness Wristbands after Reports of Wrist Irritation
In mid-August, McDonald's Inc. announced a recall of its Step-It Fitness Tracker Happy Meal toys. Encouraged by the burgeoning market of fitness wearables like the FitBit health tracker, as well as "smart" wearables like the Apple Watch, the wristband-like wearable device functioned as a pedometer, ostensibly to encourage physical activity among its young wearers. No...
Hyundai Recalls Sonata for Ejecting Sunroof
In what had to be an embarrassing press release, Hyundai Motors announced the recall of certain 2015 and 2016 Sonata models with panoramic sunroofs. An estimated 62,811 "potentially affected" vehicles are believed to on the road at this time. It appears the affected Sonatas have problems keeping the sunroofs' tempered glass sheets secured to the...
We All Scream: Cookie-Dough Supplier Behind Latest Blue Bell Recall
As of late September another recall has joined the list of recalled Blue Bell products, but this one appears to be related to their partner supplier Aspen Hills, Inc., who made the tainted cookie dough included in the newly recalled products. What does this mean for people who may have been exposed to potentially tainted...
Homeopathic Teething Tablets Analyzed Due to Allegedly Dangerous Ingredients
At some point or another in the past, you may have invested in a homeopathic remedy for what ails you or a loved one. I get it; it's not uncommon to dislike pharmaceutical companies when they charge you an arm and a leg for synthetic prescription drugs, each of which carries a long list of...
Musnuff v. Haeger: Large Companies Hiding Evidence
One of the less discussed cases on the 2016 Supreme Court docket is Musnuff v. Haeger. The case is fascinating on a couple of levels. First, it is more confirmation that in civil litigation, large defendants and their attorneys will often go to great lengths to hide and obscure vital, potentially damaging evidence. Secondly, the...
It’s All in the Hips: Metal-on-Metal Hip Replacements and the Law
Medical science rose in part from a need and desire to combat and cure human frailty, and has made tremendous strides toward its effective treatment. For instance, many companies have devoted considerable resources to the creation of prosthetic devices and orthopedic implants to replace failing joints. One often-replaced area is the ball-and-socket joint system that...
The Electric GM Battery Test: Lithium and the Law
As circumstances have forced us to report several times recently, lithium-ion battery technology is far from perfect. A fully-depleted lithium-ion battery cannot be conventionally disposed of, as it required specialized recycling or hazardous-waste disposal. More than that, the composition of the battery can make it prone to thermal runaway events, which cause the battery to...
A Tale of Two Torts: Taxotere and WEN Hair Care
Like it or not--deny it or not--image is important to all of us. How we define ourselves is partly shaped by how we are perceived, or at least how we *think* we are perceived, by others. One area that commands a great deal of attention during our normal routine is our hair. It's a vital...
What Law Governs Guardrail Spearing Injuries in Texas
Just a couple of weeks ago, outside of Amarillo, a passenger was speared by a guardrail in a car accident. According to reports, the passenger suffered a severe leg laceration and it is possible that on-scene first aid saved their life. While being speared by a guardrail isn't the first injury that pops to mind...
Tyson Chicken Nugget Recall & Texas Products Liability Law
Tyson Foods, Inc. recently issued a recall of 132,520 pounds of pre-cooked chicken nuggets. According to their release, some of the 66+ tons of Panko Chicken Nuggets involved in the recall contain pieces of hard plastic within their processed pieces. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety Inspection Service is helping to circulate the Class...
What Do I Do if I’m Injured by a Power Morcellator?
A common but highly-unwelcome occurrence for women is the development of uterine fibroids, small generally-benign tumors that cause considerable pelvic and abdominal pain, getting worse as they grow. Uterine fibroids occur when muscle tissue in the uterus begins to grow abnormally, though science is not yet certain of the reason for this ailment. Fibroid tissue...
Quality Control Issues with Smith & Wesson M&P 15-22?
Leaving aside the meta-issue of gun ownership currently burning its way through the comments section of your favorite social media, I think we can all agree that if a person is to own a firearm, it would be great if that firearm were trustworthy and not prone to surprising "quirks." Recent reports from Project Appleseed,...
In Light of Xarelto Lawsuits – Here’s a Refresher on Products Liability Law
Most people take for granted that when a defectively designed or dangerous product hurts people, the manufacturer can be held accountable for releasing that product into the marketplace. Most people appreciate (and all enjoy) the fact that our country's products laws place a burden on manufacturers to create safe products. Nevertheless, a fairly significant minority...
New York Governor Bans Sex Offenders from Playing Pokémon Go
Recently I wrote about Pokémon Go, the new augmented-reality offering from Niantic, Incorporated. While the game offers a slew of incentives to exercise and make new friends in a time when children and adults are increasingly withdrawn thanks to technology, it also poses a variety of safety hazards due to the nature of its gameplay....
Samsung Galaxy Note 7 and Products Liability Law
It was a recall that sort of flew under the radar, until the Federal Aviation Administration issued a statement urging Samsung Galaxy Note 7 devices not to power up the devices in-flight, due to concerns about the batteries catching fire without warning. Since that time, the government issued a formal recall and existing rules prohibit...
Take This to Heart: IVC Filter Risks and Recourse for the Injured
In the interest of keeping blood clots from causing debilitating and sometimes lethal damage to patients, an enterprising vascular surgeon named Dr. Kazi Mobin-Uddin invented the inferior vena cava (IVC) filter in 1969. Surgically implanted, the small filters function as traps for roving clots, keeping them from reaching the heart, lungs, or brain, where they...
Benzene: Its Effects and Legal Recourse for the Injured
History's progress has been fueled by some very dangerous chemicals. The chemicals that immediately come to mind are those that soak into people's bones and ruins their lives. So many are produced and used each year that safety testing for their human and environmental effects is often inadequate - or missing altogether. Unsurprisingly, some of...
