Holding manufacturers accountable for defective products.
When a product fails, the consequences can be life-altering. Manufacturers, distributors, and retailers have a duty to design safe products, build them to spec, and warn about foreseeable risks. When they don’t, the law gives injured people a path to accountability. McEldrew Purtell investigates the entire chain of distribution and pursues the full measure of justice for catastrophic injury and wrongful death caused by defective products.
Trial Lawyers for Defective & Dangerous Products
With decades of experience in catastrophic injury and medical malpractice litigation, our firm has litigated complex product cases and related catastrophic injury matters.
Our Results
McEldrew Purtell has a proven track record of maximizing recovery for our clients.
Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances.
Navigating Products Liability Cases: Catastrophic Injury & Wrongful Death
This guide is practical, assertive, and built for action. It explains how product cases work, what to do right now, and how to choose the right firm for a catastrophic injury or wrongful death case.
Ways We Can Help
Defective-product cases often require rapid evidence preservation, engineering analysis, and expert testimony. Our team moves quickly to secure the product, inspect it, and build a theory of liability under design defect, manufacturing defect, or failure-to-warn law.
Auto Defect & Crashworthiness
Vehicles must protect occupants during foreseeable crashes. We pursue claims involving structural failures, restraint system issues, and other crashworthiness defects.
Defective Tires
Tire de-treads, blowouts, and bead failures can cause loss of control and catastrophic crashes. We investigate design and manufacturing flaws, recall history, and service practices.
Child Product Hazards
Products marketed for infants and children must meet stringent safety standards. We handle ingestion/aspiration injuries (such as button batteries) and injuries linked to recalled sleepers and similar devices.
Household Safety Devices
When smoke alarms or CO detectors fail to warn, the results can be devastating. We work to determine whether design defects, inadequate warnings, or counterfeit/defective components are to blame.
Consumer Electronics & Appliances
Lithium-ion, charging, or circuitry defects can trigger fires and burn injuries. We pursue claims against manufacturers and sellers for dangerous products placed into commerce.
Power Tools & Equipment
Guarding failures, switch defects, and inadequate warnings on saws, grinders, and other tools can cause life-changing injuries. We develop evidence through engineering analysis and standards review.
Automotive Rollaway / Gear-Selector Defects
Park/shift system design issues can lead to rollaway incidents. We investigate human-factors design, warnings, and alternative designs that should have been used.
Community Safety: Ghost-Gun–Related Injuries
We are investigating claims against entities that design, distribute, or facilitate access to untraceable firearms that foreseeably cause harm.
Medical Devices & Implants
When implants or life-sustaining devices fail—think hip/knee implants, IVC filters, insulin pumps, pacemakers, surgical mesh—the results can be catastrophic.
Don’t Just Take Our Word For It
Hear From Our Clients
At McEldrew Purtell, results matter and so does the way we achieve them. While our case outcomes reflect our tenacity in court and at the negotiation table, it’s the voices of our clients that truly capture who we are and why we do this work.
We represent people at the worst moments of their lives: after catastrophic injuries, workplace tragedies, and preventable losses. Through every case, we aim to deliver not just compensation but clarity, confidence, and care.
If you’re considering working with a Philadelphia trial lawyer, we invite you to read what our clients have said about their experiences with McEldrew Purtell. Their words are the most powerful testament to our values, our dedication, and our results.
Learn More
Investigation Update: Ford Recalls More Than 850,000 Vehicles Over Faulty Fuel Pump
McEldrew Purtell currently represents multiple clients affected by a secondary fuel filter leak in Ford vehicles, which poses an increased risk of engine fire. One week before the court ordered inspection and destructive testing in our first case, the National…
Investigation Starts on Over 200,000 Ford Vehicles with Fuel Leak Concerns
McEldrew Purtell currently represents multiple clients affected by a secondary fuel filter leak in Ford vehicles, which poses an increased risk of engine fire. One week before the court ordered inspection and destructive testing in that first case, the National…
Tesla Autopilot Lawsuits
When you purchase a Tesla automobile from a dealer, it includes a standard Autopilot system. You have the option to replace that with a Full Self Driving (FSD) feature. Despite what the names suggest, neither feature removes the need for…
Momaid Infant Lounger CPSC Warning
On June 8, 2023, the US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issued a warning about the Momaid infant lounger. According to that warning, the product does not meet critical US safety standards for infant sleep products. Danger Presented by the…
Boppy Newborn Lounger and Infant Pillow Recall
Boppy Newborn Lounger and Infant Pillow Recalls Exhausted parents and caregivers are constantly on the lookout for any device or product that can help them to care for their newborns. While some popular infant loungers include warnings against allowing newborns…
Recall Lawsuits: How and When To File
Recalls are often issued by manufacturers to remove defective and dangerous goods from the market, such as faulty products and contaminated foods. This is done to protect the public from physical injuries and potential health risks. However, recalls aren’t always…
FAQs
Get answers to commonly asked questions regarding product defect injuries and learn how we can help with your case.
What is a products liability case?
A civil claim arising when a defective or unreasonably dangerous product causes injury or death. Liability can be based on design, manufacturing, or failure-to-warn defects.
Who can be held responsible?
Any entity in the chain of distribution – manufacturers, component suppliers, distributors, and retailers – may be liable. You do not have to choose only one; claims can reach multiple responsible parties.
Do I need to prove the company was “negligent”?
Not always. Many claims proceed under strict liability, which focuses on the defective condition and its causal link to your injury. Others proceed under negligence or breach of warranty.
What should I do with the product and packaging?
Preserve everything—the product (even if broken), packaging, instructions, receipts, and any remaining parts. Photograph the scene and injuries. Contact us so we can arrange proper evidence preservation and expert inspection.
Is a recall required to bring a case?
No. A recall can help establish notice, but it’s not required. The core question is whether the product was defective and caused harm.