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(314) 500-HURTIf you were injured and your life was changed because of a dangerous product, call the St. Louis-based Missouri product liability firm of Burger Law at (314) 500-HURT or fill out our online form for a free consultation.
Products are all around us. When we buy them, we not only assume they are effective at their stated purpose, but that they have been sufficiently tested and are safe for us to use. But too often, that is not the case. A defective car part can cause an accident, a household appliance may be prone to tipping over and injure a child and some products can even cause cancer. Every attorney at Burger Law’s product liability law firm in Missouri has dedicated their life to helping the injured receive justice and full compensation for their injuries.
If you buy a product, that means that somebody designed it, somebody made it, manufactured it, distributed it and sold it. While you would like to think those people would take responsibility when their product injures you, the truth is they will often do everything they can to avoid doing the right thing. If they admit your injuries are their fault, they not only have to pay you, but they risk the chances of more people seeking compensation in a class action lawsuit once their negligence has been uncovered. But you have rights when it comes to defective products, and with the fierce and tenacious attorneys of Burger Law by your side, these negligent organizations will be held accountable and you can secure the great financial recovery you are owed.
Use our free personal injury calculator to see how much your product liability claim may be worth in Missouri.
In 2021, 11,738,091 people went to the emergency room because of injuries related to consumer goods. While that number alone is staggering, pre-pandemic levels were much, much higher. According to the Consumer Products Safety Commission, deaths, injuries and property damage from defective products costs the U.S. over $1 trillion annually, and defective products lead to over 29.4 million injuries and 21,400 deaths each year.
According to the Insurance Information Institute, product liability claims have the highest average jury awards of all injury claims. The median jury award in 2020 was $7,058,106, while the mean average was $3,908,111. For claims that did not go to trial, compensation was typically between $20,000 and $505,000. The numbers speak to the amount of damage manufacturers, distributors and vendors can do when they break the rules and do not value consumers’ safety.
In Missouri, you can bring a product liability claim based on one of three legal theories:
Most personal injury claims are based on the theory of negligence. If you are making your claim under the legal theory of negligence, you must prove the following five things
Examples of negligence in Missouri product liability claims may be that a manufacturer did not run enough tests before putting the product on the market, or that they were aware of a defect but did not issue a recall.
In Missouri, the theory of strict product liability laid out in Missouri Revised Statute §537.760 stipulates that anybody involved in the chain of distribution can be held liable for your injuries regardless of their intent or whether or not they were negligent. An entity may be held liable if:
They transferred a product in the course of their business; and
In order to prove a strict liability claim, you must show that your injuries resulted from a condition or defect, that the defect was an unreasonably dangerous one and that the defect existed at the time it left the manufacturer’s control. You do not have to show that the defendant breached a duty of care.
Most products are covered by a warranty; we expect products to work in the ways they are intended to. When they do not, that constitutes a breach of warranty. There are two types of warranties:
While you do not necessarily have to prove that a manufacturer, distributor or vendor was negligent, there are other factors to determine whether or not you have a claim. To make a product liability claim, you must ask yourself the following questions:
If you think you may have a claim, call the product liability law firm of Burger Law now at (314) 500-HURT. We know how to get to the bottom of injury cases, recover the evidence we need and hold negligent organizations responsible for the harm they cause.
Much of what your product liability claim will come down to is the idea of reasonableness: whether you were reasonable or unreasonable in how you used the product, and whether or not the product presented an unreasonable risk of harm. The term “reasonable” or the idea of a “reasonable person” is central to most tort and injury claims. Individuals and organizations need to act in an appropriate way, or as an ordinary, responsible person would when trying to avoid harming others. A drunk driver cannot be considered to have acted reasonably after they injured someone, as any responsible person would understand the risks of driving drunk.
In a product liability case, the “fact-finder,” meaning a judge, jury, mediator or insurance company, will evaluate if you acted reasonably. If you were driving the speed limit, your vehicle’s brakes stopped working and you became injured after you drove into a ditch, the fact-finder would likely find that you had acted reasonably. If you were riding on top of the car and were thrown off when the brakes stopped working, you likely would not have a successful claim as that was not a reasonable or reasonably anticipated use.
We offer free consultations and are available 24/7 to take your call. Live chat, text, and virtual meetings are available.
On the other hand, the product needs to be “unreasonably dangerous” to have a successful claim. Some products, such as drain cleaners or chainsaws, carry inherent risk. Others, we can expect to use in a reasonable manner and not be harmed. A car that’s brakes go out while the driver is following the rules of the road, or potentially cancer-causing talcum powders, are examples of products that are unreasonably dangerous. A product can be unreasonably dangerous in one of three ways:
A common defense in product liability claims is that you did not use the product as intended or were unreasonable. The Missouri products liability law firm of Burger Law has been fighting back against these companies for over 30 years, and will not let them blame you for the harm they caused.
According to Missouri law, you can make a claim against anyone in the stream of commerce, including:
Under Missouri Revised Statute §537.762, someone whose only role was to sell the product can be dismissed from a lawsuit if:
The effect of the statute is that even if the seller did nothing wrong, they still have to compensate you if there are no other defendants, for example if a manufacturer no longer exists or is in a different country and near-impossible to find. It also means that if the other defendants are not able to pay for all of your damages, the seller must make up the difference.
The most important things to do after any injury is make sure everyone around you is safe, and promptly seek medical attention. If you do not believe your injuries are severe enough to merit an emergency room visit, it is still a good idea to make an appointment with your primary care physician to get checked out. Next, if you have been injured by a dangerous product, you should start taking important steps to preserve evidence and get the best results in your claim:
Your financial recovery is meant to compensate you for every way a defective product has affected your life; no more, no less. While insurance companies and wealthy defense attorneys will try to devalue your claim, with the dedicated and aggressive Missouri product liability law firm of Burger Law, you can receive compensation for:
Certain factors, such as if your injuries lead to permanent disability or whether or not we can pursue punitive damages, can greatly increase your compensation.
When it comes to getting you damages in your case, we are never satisfied with 50 percent, 75 percent or even 95 percent. We fight until there is nothing left to fight and you receive the settlement or verdict that truly compensates you for your injuries.
Our St. Louis-based Missouri product liability law firm has over 30 years of experience litigating and trying defective product claims. We’re used to companies hiring an army of litigation defense lawyers to try to have the case thrown out, blame the injured for the harm their products caused or mislead a jury into thinking that the company does not bear responsibility. Through our experience, dedication and hard work, we have learned how to fight back against ridiculous defenses, hold negligent manufacturers, distributors and vendors accountable and bring the injured a sense of justice.
One thing we do when we take on a product liability claim is try to find out if there are others who have also been affected by the defective product. Currently, Burger Law is part of two class action claims aimed at getting compensation for people who have been injured or suffered financial loss because of a defective product.
Exactech is a medical device manufacturer that largely produces orthopeadic implants. Our Exactech recall lawsuit is centered on the damage done by three different implants:
The packaging for the joint replacements did not contain a necessary second barrier layer of Ethylene Vinyl Alcohol, which was intended in the design and would have protected the inserts from being exposed to too much oxygen. Too much oxygen leads to oxidation, which can degrade the inserts and cause them to fail much sooner than expected. For some patients, the joint replacements led to:
While Exactech has issued refunds for their product, Burger Law’s product liability law firm is seeking justice for the physical and emotional harm that Exactech caused through their negligence.
Ferrari recently recalled over 23,000 vehicles sold in the U.S. between 2005 and 2022. In our Ferrari brake recall lawsuit, we allege that Ferrari and manufacturer Robert Bosch installed faulty brake fluid reservoir caps, may have known about the defect since as early as 2015 and should have known about the defect earlier through testing.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued two separate recalls for different Ferrari models in Oct. 2021 and Jul. 2022. While a manufacturer must fix any motor vehicle component recall for free, doing so does not compensate anyone for other damages they sustained. Burger Law is seeking compensation for Ferrari owners for:
Learn more about the Ferrari brake recall lawsuit here, or by clicking the buttons below:
If you are an Exactech joint insert recipient or Ferrari owner who sustained losses because of the manufacturer’s defective products, call Burger Law immediately at (314) 500-HURT or fill out our online form.
Burger Law’s Missouri product liability law firm has the experience, legal knowledge and dedication to aggressively pursue justice in your case. While we always seek to get our clients the compensation they deserve in negotiations, you need an attorney team that is not afraid to go to trial if needed. We are experienced in advanced trial law and are constantly honing our skills to get our clients throughout Missouri the compensation they need to truly recover. Among the great recoveries we have secured includes a $113 million trial verdict in a class action case that made it all the way up to the Missouri Supreme Court.
When you hire us, we immediately get to work getting the evidence and expert testimony to prove your claim. Throughout your claim, whether we get a quick settlement or go all the way to a lengthy jury trial, we will be by your side. We are in constant communication with you about the status of your claim and are always available to answer any legal questions you may have.
As product liability claims often involve numerous plaintiffs and defendants who may be in different jurisdictions, the lawsuits often go to federal courts. In addition to Missouri and Missouri, Burger Law is admitted to practice in various federal courts, and has done so successfully for clients seeking compensation in product liability claims.
CALL BURGER LAW TODAY
Burger Law knows the devastating consequences being injured from a dangerous product can have on your life. We have visited Missouri clients in the hospital and listened to families as they have recounted painful details of their loved one’s passing. An injured person going against large manufacturers and multinational organizations is not a fair fight; that is why we have dedicated our careers to using the full force of our legal experience and knowledge to stand up to bullies and balance the scales of justice. If you or someone you know has been hurt by a defective product, call the Missouri product liability law firm of Burger Law now at (314) 500-HURT or contact us online.
Client Reviews
This law firm is absolutely amazing. They took on my case, when nobody else would! They fought hard for me when it seemed there was no hope. They kept me informed and always asked for my input before making decisions on my case. Gary puts himself into every case unlike most law firm owners. Gary and his team really care about every one of their clients, and fights hard to get you a fair settlement. They actually won my case out of court, and then reduced my fees to make sure I could get my car fixed and be able to get back to some normality. I would recommend Burger Law over and above any other firm! If you go somewhere else you aren’t getting the best!
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Frequently asked questions
If your spouse has been diagnosed with a terminal illness after using a p …
Class Action claims are mega-lawsuits. They involve potentially thousands …
Warning labels tell us when a product is dangerous, or when it can have d …
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