- Miriam Schimmel | February 27, 2008 1:32 PM |
Category:
Defective & Dangerous ProductsMitsubishi was found liabile this week for a defective seatbelt which caused the death of a 25 year old passenger in a Montero SUV.Car manufacturer Mitsubishi was ordered by a West Palm Beach, Florida court to pay $11 million to a couple whose 25 year old son died in a crash when the Montero SUV he was riding in rolled over. Of that amount, $10 million was awarded for pain and suffering over...
- Shehnaz Bhujwala | February 27, 2008 10:42 AM |
Category:
MiscellaneousThe recent lapse in a temporary US wiretapping law has brought much uncertainty to private telecommunications companies and, according to the White House, threatens to disrupt future surveillance operations. Fueling this uncertainty is the raging debate in Congress over whether phone providers that helped in the National Security Agency's post 9/11 program of wiretapping without warrants should...
- Lance Rubin | February 26, 2008 5:28 PM |
Category:
MiscellaneousFor years, the company that operates the steam system under Philadelphia streets has had a problem with homeless men removing manhole covers. Even though the company knew about this problem, it did nothing to stop it. In 2004, this failure spelled disaster for 30 year old medical student Marcus Gustafsson, who fell into an uncovered manhole and plunged 18 feet, breaking his back. Because of...
- Cheryl Buchanan | February 23, 2008 6:24 PM |
Category:
MiscellaneousDespite the fact that all of the other Defendants have settled a total of more than 500 cases that were pending in the coordinated litigation known as "Clergy I" in the Los Angeles Archdiocese, the Salesian Order of priests and brothers remains on a dangerous course of denial. At this time, Kiesel, Boucher & Larson is preparing for not only its first trial (scheduled to begin April 14, 2008)...
- Lance Rubin | February 19, 2008 5:23 PM |
Category:
Toxic SubstancesThe 2005 explosion at British Petroleum's Texas City plant killed 15 people and injured more than 170 others. Civil suits filed by the injured people and the families of those killed have been mostly resolved, but BP is being fined for its wrongdoing. The explosion at the Texas City plant about 40 miles southeast of Houston occurred after a piece of equipment called a blowdown drum overfilled...
- Shehnaz Bhujwala | February 19, 2008 11:19 AM |
Category:
Toxic SubstancesLast week, California's Supreme Court unanimously ruled that a federal food labeling law does not preclude California citizens from using state consumer laws to enforce an identical state labeling law. The High Court's ruling means consumers may sue grocery store chains to enforce a state law requiring labeling of dyes added to farm-raised salmon.Do you recall a time in the not-too distant past...
- Jenny Albano | February 17, 2008 8:57 PM |
Category:
Defective & Dangerous ProductsOn Sunday, February 17, the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture recalled 143 million pounds of frozen beef form a slaughterhouse in Southern California that is being investigated for mistreating the cattle. This recall is the largest beef recall in the U.S. since 1999.The recall affects beef from Chino-based Westland/Hallmark Agency dating to February 1, 2006. This company supplies meat for the federal...
- Michael Eyerly | February 15, 2008 6:08 PM |
Category:
Defective & Dangerous ProductsIn a previous blog entry I lamented the steady decline of our public agencies' ability to protect particularly vulnerable segments of our society, as well as Big Business's ability to use its influence and power to further stifle meaningful consumer protection. For example, California's budget crisis has resulted in across the board budget reductions for state agencies charged with protecting...
- Miriam Schimmel | February 13, 2008 2:49 PM |
Category:
MiscellaneousCases across the country have held employers liable for employees who drive and cause accidents and injuries while talking on company cell phones.International Paper Co. just agreed to pay $5.2 million to settle a personal injury claim for damages resulting from an automobile accident that occurred while its employee was talking on a cell phone provided by the company. The plaintiff alleged...
- Lance Rubin | February 12, 2008 2:20 PM |
Category:
MiscellaneousFive year old Spencer Oram has cerebral palsy today because the obstetrician who delivered him failed to heed warning signs and perform a Caesarean section. Instead, the obstetrician waited. By the time the baby was born, he had been deprived of oxygen for too long and developed cerebral palsy, a life-long, debilitating condition. His twin sister, born half an hour earlier, is fine.Spencer's...
- Michael Eyerly | February 08, 2008 5:49 PM |
Category:
MiscellaneousAs if the news about the housing industry wasn't bad enough already. What with stagnant home sales, plummeting home prices and the so called "sub-prime mortgage meltdown" there are plenty of things about which to worry. Now comes news of an alleged scheme carried out by KB Home and Countrywide Financial to defraud consumers. Here is what a newly filed class action lawsuit alleges - KB Homes...
- Miriam Schimmel | February 08, 2008 4:56 PM |
Category:
Toxic SubstancesPhthalates are chemicals which are used to stabilize fragrances and make plastics flexible. They are typically found in many products including cosmetics, toys, vinyl flooring and medical supplies. A recent study suggests their presence in baby shampoos, lotions and powders may expose infants to chemicals that have been linked with possible reproductive problems. The study, which is published...
- Lance Rubin | February 06, 2008 7:53 PM |
Category:
MiscellaneousA West Virginia teen struck by a truck driven by a City employee recovers $7.5 million for his brain injury, even though the City claimed they weren't liable.Seventeen year old Travis Dalton was on his way to a job interview, when he was struck by a truck driven by an employee of the City of Norfolk, West Virginia. Now Travis will never work due to the brain injury he suffered in the accident. ...
- Shehnaz Bhujwala | February 04, 2008 5:50 PM |
Category:
Defective & Dangerous ProductsThe Food and Drug Administration issued a public health advisory last Friday to alert health care providers, patients, and caregivers to new safety warnings concerning Chantix (varenicline), a prescription medication used to help patients stop smoking. Government regulators believe the connection between Pfizer's anti-smoking drug Chantix and serious neuropsychiatric problems is "increasingly...