Long History Of Helping People In New Jersey

Manufacturers, designers, and sellers of products have an obligation to sell a product that is reasonably fit, suitable or safe for its intended purpose. When they fail to do so, that company can – and should – be held accountable for its failure to create a product that is defect-free and safe to use.

Products may be defective for a number of reasons, including a design defect, a manufacturer’s defect, and a failure to warn of a danger. Whatever the circumstances with your dangerous product, make sure you talk to a New Jersey product liability attorney who knows the law and understands how the legal system works in your area. Make sure you talk to a lawyer at Shebell & Shebell, LLC.

Founded in 1927, our law firm has a long, storied history of helping people injured in accidents due to dangerous or defective products. We understand the seriousness and complexity of these cases. That’s why we’re eager to meet with you and learn more about what happened to you. That way, we can come up with a solution for addressing your particular illness or injury.

Examples Of Defective Products

Defective and dangerous products can cover a wide range. Cars and machines break and malfunction. Defective drugs cause unthinkable harm. Chemicals burn and poison victims, causing devastating injuries and tragic deaths to families and children. When negligence runs rampant, products for the home and for work can cause terrible injuries and even death. Sometimes, a freak accident happens because a manufacturer put profits over safety.

Many industries have been taken to court repeatedly for seriously injuring the American public with defective and toxic products. Lawsuits often have the effect of bringing public attention to serious health dangers. Juries have the awesome power to hold a corporation accountable, and force manufacturers to either make products safer or to remove dangerous products from the marketplace altogether.

We take such power and responsibility very seriously. That’s why we would be honored to represent you in court in your product liability case. That’s why we want to meet with you as soon as possible.

Types Of Product Liability Cases

Our personal injury law firm handles a wide range of product liability cases throughout New Jersey. Some of the most common – and most serious – product liability cases we regularly deal with involve:

  • Design defects – Products may be defective because the designer did not account for safety during the design and testing phase. This is called a design defect case. To succeed in a case like this, an injured person must prove the existence of a feasible, safer alternative design that does not impair the use of the product.
  • Manufacturer defect – Products may be defective because they do not meet the manufacturer’s design specifications or were not made of the same quality as other products that came off the same assembly line. A manufacturer defect case involves a product that did not follow the explicit directions of the designer and caused a customer harm.
  • Failure to warn – Products may also be defective because of a failure to warn people of dangers in the use of the product. Some products have dangerous characteristics. In those cases, the manufacturer or seller must provide adequate, easily understandable warnings and instructions about how to best avoid the danger.

Product Liability Laws In New Jersey

New Jersey’s product liability laws protect people injured by defective products by making the manufacturer or seller strictly liable for personal injuries. The law presumes that the manufacturer or seller had knowledge of the defect at the time of sale. However, the injured person must prove that the defect existed when the product was in the hands of the seller.

Assessing Your NJ Product Liability Case

When we first consider taking on a product defect case, we ask ourselves some basic and fundamental questions:

  • Would a Failure Mode Effects Analysis (FMEA) performed by a company’s safety and design engineers have led the manufacturer to a safer design?
  • Did the manufacturer consider a safety engineering hierarchy:
    • Eliminate the hazard, if possible
    • Guard against the hazard, if the hazard cannot be eliminated, and;
    • If guards are not possible without impairing the use of the product, then the manufacturer must adequately warn about the dangers.
  • If the manufacturer provided a guard, was it effective, or could an employer or user easily remove or modify?

We ask these questions and many, many more each time we assess a product liability case. You can expect the same attention to detail when we work with you on your potential case.

Working With Experts To Prove Your Case

New Jersey law generally requires expert testimony, if the type of engineering analysis needed to prove a defect is beyond the understanding of the ordinary juror. In most cases, an expert witness must state a conclusion about the defect before a jury can even hear the case.

Before we take a case, we regularly collaborate with a network of engineers to assess the defectiveness of a product. Most importantly, we want to understand why a product is defective. In the event we obtain expert conclusions that a product is dangerous and defective, we will file a lawsuit with the intention that the case will eventually be tried in front of a jury.

We prepare every product liability case we handle in anticipation of going to trial. Many times, companies see the work we have done and agree to settle before going to trial, often for an undisclosed amount. Other times, they do not settle. In these cases, we’re ready and prepared to take them on in court before a judge and jury for the financial compensation you deserve.

Rely On Us. Contact Our Freehold Product Liability Attorneys.

Don’t underestimate the complexity of product liability injury or illness. Get the help you need now to get your life back on track. Contact our law firm and schedule your free case evaluation with an experienced New Jersey product liability lawyer who will put your needs first. Talk to an attorney at Shebell & Shebell, LLC today. Our office is located in Shrewsbury.

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