Buffalo residents who have purchased a step stool from Target Stores – either in store or from their website – should be aware that the store has issued two recalls of step stools in the last two month dues to concerns about their collapsing, potentially leading to serious injury.

On August 4, 2011, Target recalled 206,000 storage step stools.  A second recall on August 23, 2011 involved an additional 341,000 stools.  According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, there have been 27 reports of the stools collapsing or otherwise breaking, leading to injury to eight adults and fourteen children.  The injuries included a pelvis fracture to one individual and two other individuals suffering broken arms.

The recalled stools are wooden and were sold under the Circo and Do Your Room brand names between January of 2007 and October of 2010.  If you own one of these stools, please stop using it immediately.  You may either return the stool to any Target store or call 1-800-440-0680 for a full refund.

Hopefully, this recall will help avert future injuries.  If you have suffered an injury due to a defective product, please feel free to call us at 716-542-5444.  We would be happy to help you.

The Chapter 11 bankruptcy of automakers GM and Chrysler resulted in sales of many of their assets to the U.S. Government and Fiat, respectively, approximately two years ago.  Their bankruptcy, however, is still having an impact on Buffalo residents pursuing a personal injury lawsuit against either of these manufacturers.

Usually, an individual who has been injured as a result of a defect in the design or construction of a motor vehicle may sue the manufacturer.  Pursuing and actually obtaining compensation for an injury, however, has become much more difficult for those who initiated a lawsuit involving an automobile manufactured by GM or Chrysler prior to the conclusion of the bankruptcy proceedings.  This is because the sale of the company’s assets were allowed to proceed clear of any encumbrance for prior debt incurred as a result of product liability claims.  In other words, the new owners would not be required to pay any debt arising from old product liability claims.

This decision applied even to lawsuits that had been concluded and the victim was simply awaiting payment from the company. 

Following protests by several members of Congress, the new owners of both companies have agreed to remain exposed regarding accidents occurring after the bankruptcy, regardless of when the vehicle was manufactured.  For those who had pending lawsuits, however, there is little money being made available to them, and – if they receive anything in negotiations with the companies – it is often a fraction of the actual value of their damages.

If you have been injured in a motor vehicle accident and have any questions, we would be happy to help.  Please call us at 716-542-5444.

Buffalo parents concerned about the possibility of a toddler suffering a personal injury from an improperly designed crib of bed can rest a little easier.  This month, the Consumer Product Safety Commission announced the unanimous approval of a new set of standards designed to make toddler beds safer.  These new standards are mandatory for toddler beds sold in the United States.

These new standards require that the following protections be included on all toddler beds in addition to the regulations previously in place:

· The top of the bed’s guardrail must be at least five inches above the mattress.

· Toddler beds must undergo spindle/slat strength testing consistent with the testing already required for spindles/slats on cribs.

· Separate warning labels addressing the possibility of entrapment and strangulation must be placed on toddler beds.

Cribs that can convert into toddler beds are also required to comply with these new standards.  The new standards will take effect six months after publication in the Federal Register.  They apply to toddler beds manufactured or imported into the United States.

These changes were instituted for the purpose of reducing the risk of personal injury to toddlers.  If your child has suffered an injury from a defective product, we would be happy to help you.  We can be reached at 716-542-5444.

Many Buffalo personal injury lawsuits are the result of consumers using unsafe products.  In an effort to provide consumers with information before a personal injury occurs, on March 11, 2011 the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) launched a new, congressionally mandated product safety database at SaferProducts.gov.

Consumers may use this new website to report harm or risk of harm caused by a consumer product.  Around the beginning of April, these reports will be searchable by consumers who may have concerns about a specific product.   

The reason for the delay in reports becoming searchable is because the CPSC must review all reports submitted and transmit them to the manufacturer, when possible, within five business days.  The manufacturer then has ten business days to respond with any comments or claims. Once that ten days has passed, both the report and the manufacturer’s comments, if any, will be posted on SaferProducts.gov

Submitted reports that lack required information or are determined to be inaccurate will not be published.  If a report includes confidential information, it will be redacted prior to publication.

Recall information may also be searched at the website.

If you have suffered a personal injury from a dangerous product, we would be happy to help you.  Please feel free to call us at 716-542-5444.

Buffalo parents should be aware that Fisher-Price recently recalled more than 10 million products sold in the United States because they pose a potential hazard to children.  This recall involves a variety of different products.

Fourteen models of the Fisher-Price Trikes and Tough Trikes tricycles are being recalled because a plastic ignition key that sticks up in front of the seat can cause injury, including genital bleeding, if a child sits or falls on it.  Fisher-Price is aware of ten cases of injury associated with the key, including six that required medical attention.

Seven models of infant activity centers with inflatable balls are being recalled because the valve on the inflatable balls can come off, posing a potential choking hazard for young children.  There have been 46 reports of valves falling off and 14 reports of valves found in children’s mouths. 

950,000 Fisher-Price high chairs are being recalled because of injuries caused to children who have fallen onto the pegs on the back legs.  Seven children have required stitches and one suffered a damaged tooth.

Finally, the Fisher-Price Little People Wheelies Stand ‘n Play Rampway is being recalled because the wheels may come off  two of the cars in the set and pose a choking hazard to young children.

If you believe you own one of these pontentially dangerous products, please stop using it and contact Fisher-Price for more information.  Fisher-Price is providing either free repair kits or replacement products for the recalled items.  More information can be found at www.cpsc.gov.

Because there are several Family Dollar Stores in the Buffalo region, Buffalo parents should be aware that the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and Family Dollar Stores are recalling 1.8 million toy dart gun sets sold exclusively through Family Dollar.  This decision was made following the asphyxiation deaths of a 9 year old boy in Chicago and a 10 year old boy in Milwaukee.  The children inhaled the soft plastic dart and were unable to breathe.

The dart guns subject to the recall were imported by Henry Gordy International Inc., of Plainfield, New Jersey.  Because Henry Gordy Int. refused to recall the dart guns, Family Dollar is now working with the CPSC to announce the recall.  The dart guns are labeled as the “Auto Fire” toy target set and is sold with either an orange and yellow toy gun (item #P238) or a blue and yellow toy gun (item #9328).  The set includes eight orange darts and a five inch target board with numbers from 1 to 20. The item number may be located on the side of the handle in raised lettering.

If you have one of these toy gun sets, you should either return the set to Family Dollar for a refund or discard it.  If you need additional information, Family Dollar’s recall hotline can be reached during normal business hours at (800) 547-0359. 

 If you or one of your children has been injured by a dangerous product, please feel free to contact my office at 716-542-5444.  We would be happy to help you.

Many of our children in the Buffalo area are excited to see the Buffalo Sabres back in the playoffs.  If you have purchased a hockey stick for your children, however, please be aware that several sticks have recently been recalled due to the potential for injury.

On April 1, 2010 the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and Health Canada announced that Bauer Hockey Inc. of Greenland, New Hampshire was issuing a voluntary recall of several youth and junior hockey sticks, shafts and blades due to excessive levels of lead found in the paint and decals.  Approximately 67,000 hockey sticks in the U.S. and 60,000 in Canada are involved in the recall.

Several different junior hockey sticks are involved that were sold under the name brand of Bauer or Nike Bauer.  If you have such a hockey stick, a complete listing of specific sticks subject to recall can be found at http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml10/10189.html. 

The lead in these sticks may prove especially dangerous if you have a very young child in your household who may chew on the stick or one of the decals.  If you have such a stick, please stop using it immediately and put it out of the reach of children.  You should then contact the manufacturer for a replacement stick or refund at (888) 734-0443.

In Buffalo, and most other jurisdictions throughout the country, manufacturers are required to include proper warnings on labels on products or product packaging if that product presents a danger that is known to the manufacturer.  As a result, failure to properly label a product may be helpful if you are seeking compensation in a product liability case.

When determining whether a product should have carried a warning or not, courts consider issues such as whether the product is inherently dangerous, whether the manufacturer is aware of that danger, whether the product is dangerous when used for its intended purpose, and whether the danger should have been obvious to the user. 

As an example, objects such as knives generally do not need to bear a warning label because their danger should be obvious to anyone using them.  Medication, however, is required to carry warnings about possible side effects since the potential problems that could arise from use are not obvious to the user.

If you suffer an injury while using a product as directed by the manufacturer, the danger of the product was not obvious, and the manufacturer failed to adequately warn you of the potential danger, you may have the right to file a product liability lawsuit against that manufacturer.  In this situation, you should consult an attorney experienced in product liability law to help you evaluate whether you have a potential claim for damages.

Most people in Buffalo are old enough to remember Love Canal, where hazardous waste buried in the ground leaked into the environment, causing cancer, birth defects and other injuries among the local population.  Love Canal is an example of a toxic tort.

Toxic tort lawsuits involve injuries caused by chemicals or materials that are linked to physical ailments such as cancer and other diseases.  They often involve the release of dangerous material into the environment or exposure to such materials at a worksite.  Substances such as asbestos, pesticides and hazardous waste are examples of the types of materials frequently addressed in this type of litigation.

Because of the difficulties that may arise in linking a specific injury to exposure to a dangerous substance, these cases are often difficult to prove on an individual level.  As a result, toxic tort cases usually, put not always, involve a large number of plaintiffs who have been exposed to the dangerous material and exhibit similar physical problems or incidents of birth defects beyond those seen among the general population.

A person injured by a defective product may bring a lawsuit to recover damages for that injury.  So, for example, if a person living in the City of Buffalo is badly hurt when using a poorly made piece of lawn equipment, he or she may bring a lawsuit in Erie County Court.

Defective product lawsuits are commonly called product liability cases.  To recover damages in such cases, the injured party usually must establish that the defective product is inherently dangerous as it was designed or manufactured. If this is not the case, then whether the injured party can receive compensation may hinge on whether the maker of the product knew, or had reason to know, that the item was defective.

The injured party must also prove that the defect in the product was the cause of the injury.  In some cases, product liability cases may be brought in the form of class action lawsuits where compensation is sought for a large number of people injured by a defective product.