The statute of limitations in Pennsylvania is generally 2 years from the date that the person was injured. If the injured person does not file a lawsuit on or before the 2-year anniversary of their injury, then their case is forever lost. In Pennsylvania, there is another deadline, another date and it’s known as the Statute of Repose. Basically what it says is that if there is an improvement to real estate, to real property, for example, if some sort of a product is permanently attached to the real estate, then a lawsuit has to be brought within 12 years of the time that the product was attached to the real estate. If more than 12 years have elapsed between the improvement and the attachment of the real estate and the injury, then you cannot successfully bring that case because the statute of repose would be a complete defense.
The purpose for this rule is the idea that if the product has been in place for that long of a period of time and no one has been injured by it, then there’s probably not something wrong with it and there’s not any reason to keep that potential liability open for longer than 12 years. So every once in a while we run into that issue as well.
Can Someone File A Product Liability Claim If The Product Came With Warnings And Directions?
It depends. I have successfully handled cases where there were warnings on a product but perhaps they were not clear or not prominent and as a result, were never seen by the user. So there could be products where there were warnings or information set forth in a way that is not likely to be seen by the ultimate user, and that can make a product defective as well. For example, I had a case involving electrical equipment and there was a very small black and white label that was on the side of the equipment that identified and important fact about the inner components of the switch gear equipment. But it was never seen by the electrician and was not displayed in a way in which it should have been. We claimed that the warning in the label was not prominent enough and was defective, because it did not adequately warn the user of any limitations with the use of that product.
What Types Of Damages Can Be Recoverable In A Product Liability Claim?
A product liability case is a civil case that we bring on behalf of our clients for money damages. In that type of a case you can bring a claim and recover damages for economic damages such as medical bills, lost wages and benefits, and lost earning capacity. In addition to those economic damages, we can recover for non-economic damages and those include physical pain, mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life’s pleasures, inconvenience, distress, embarrassment, humiliation, and disfigurement. Those are the items of damages under Pennsylvania law. Additionally, an injured person’s spouse, their husband or wife, can recover for loss of consortium. That includes things as loss of a companionship, affection, and harm to their marriage.
For all of those items of damages, both economic and non-economic, we can recover not only for damages in the past but also project them into the future. So for example, if a person suffers a permanent injury and has lifelong pain or permanent disfigurement or some other issue like that, then we project out their life expectancy and prove that not only will they have these problems in the past, but will have them forever into the future. When we get into court, we ask the jury to compensate our clients not only for past problems but also for the future, and that applies to all items of damages including things like lost wages. If it takes a year and a half to get to trial and our client has been out of work and it appears as though they’ll never return to work, then we present evidence of lost wages and benefits not just from the past 18 months, but into the future until a normal retirement age.
Do Product Liability Cases Typically Go To Trial Or Do They Settle?
The overwhelming majority of civil cases settle out of court. We do not know at the beginning whether or not that will happen, and so we have to prepare every case right from day one as though there will be a jury trial. That way if there is no settlement or there are no adequate settlement offers made, we are prepared to go to court and let the jury decide. Because of our past history and success in handling cases and trying cases on behalf of our clients, most of our cases do settle out of court; but we don’t know that at the beginning and so we have to prepare right from the beginning as though we are going to trial. The other aspect of product liability cases which may be a little different from things like auto accidents, for example, that a lot of times a great deal of investigation and discovery has to take place before we know the strength of our case and also before we can demonstrate to the other side the strength of our case.
Because of that, typically product liability cases end up in extensive litigation before there is any discussion regarding settlement. These cases do typically go to trial more frequently than most other types of injury cases.
What Sets You And Your Firm Apart In Handling Product Liability Cases?
There is no substitute for experience. I have been handling product liability cases routinely since 1986 and so I have seen a wide array of different types of cases. Our law firm has been handling product liability cases for many, many years. We have the resources and expertise to successfully investigate, litigate, prove and try those kinds of cases. Not everybody who claims to handle product liability cases does so on a routine basis, but we do. That’s an important fact when you are looking for an attorney– you want someone who has a great deal of experience in handling this type of case because they are difficult, they are time-consuming, they are expensive to pursue, and you need somebody who has the experience, the ability, and the willingness to pursue that case vigorously on your behalf.
For more information on Statute Of Limitations For Product Liability, a free initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by calling 1-844-334-6654 today.