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Product Liability Case Review in NYC
A product injured you because the product itself was defective. Not because you used it wrong. Not because of an accident that just happened. The product had a design flaw, a manufacturing defect, or a missing warning, and it hurt someone using it as intended. That is a product-liability case in New York. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Call 718-261-0546.
How this firm handles product liability
Product-liability cases in New York are technical, expert-intensive, and capital-intensive. They require engineering experts (sometimes multiple disciplines on a single case), reverse-engineering of the defective product itself, and the ability to advance hundreds of thousands of dollars in expert costs before trial.
We do the initial evaluation, the intake, the early evidence preservation, and the case workup. For trial, we co-counsel with a vetted New York product-liability trial firm that has the expert panel, the manufacturer-defense familiarity, and the resources to take the case all the way. Co-counsel arrangements are governed by NY Rules of Professional Conduct 1.5(g) and 7.2; clients sign a written agreement on the fee-sharing structure before any case is opened. You get the boutique attention upfront and the resources of a full trial firm for the case work.
This page describes our intake practice and is not an offer of co-counsel representation. The co-counsel arrangement is offered only on cases that meet specific criteria after a case-specific evaluation. Whether your case is one we take depends on the product, the injury, the available evidence, and the carrier's coverage.
What cases we take
- Defective vehicles. Airbag failures (Takata generation), accelerator-pedal defects, sudden unintended acceleration, rollover risk in SUVs, tire blowouts, defective seatbelts. We do not handle simple no-fault collision cases as product cases unless the product defect is the proximate cause.
- Consumer products. Kitchen appliances (defective pressure cookers, range hood failures, washer-dryer mechanical defects); ladders and step stools (collapse, design-defect); power tools (kickback, blade-guard failure); sporting equipment (helmets, bicycles, climbing gear); childcare products (cribs, car seats, strollers).
- Medical devices. Defective hip and knee implants (metal-on-metal cobalt poisoning, premature failure); transvaginal mesh; intrauterine devices (Mirena, Paragard); defective insulin pumps; cardiac stents.
- Pharmaceuticals. Drugs withdrawn after harm became known (Vioxx, Zantac generic NDMA contamination, Tepezza hearing loss). Generic drugs with manufacturing defects. Drugs with failure-to-warn defects in the prescribing label.
- Industrial equipment. Forklifts, scissor lifts, presses, conveyor systems, hydraulic equipment. These overlap with construction accidents under Labor Law 240/241; both theories can be pursued in parallel.
What cases we do not take
- Asbestos and mesothelioma. These go to dedicated asbestos firms with the medical-expert relationships and the trust fund expertise. We refer out.
- Tobacco litigation. Mature mass-tort area, not our practice.
- Class-action consumer fraud. We do PI, not consumer fraud or false-advertising class work.
How long do you have to file?
The general statute is three years from the date of injury under CPLR §214(5). For latent defects (a product that injured you but the defect was not discoverable at the time), the discovery rule can apply. The clock starts when you discovered, or reasonably should have discovered, that the defect caused the injury. Cancer cases from defective pharmaceuticals or implants often turn on this distinction.
Wrongful-death product cases have a two-year statute from the date of death under EPTL §5-4.1, independent of when the underlying injury occurred.
Preserve the product
If you still have the defective product, do not throw it away, do not let anyone repair it, do not let the manufacturer take it for "inspection." Photograph it. Photograph the model number and serial number. Store it somewhere safe. Call us.
Spoliation (loss or destruction of evidence) can wreck a product-liability case before it starts. The product itself is the central piece of evidence. Our co-counsel firms reverse-engineer the product with their engineering teams; without the product, that work cannot be done.
What the case is worth
Product-liability settlements and verdicts vary widely. A pharmaceutical case with hundreds of plaintiffs and a class-action settlement structure may pay $50,000 to $500,000 per plaintiff. A single-plaintiff catastrophic-injury case (a defective ladder that caused a spinal-cord injury, a defective airbag that caused permanent neurological damage) can reach seven or eight figures. A single-plaintiff serious-injury case settles in the hundreds of thousands range when liability is clear and the defendant is well-insured.
Most NY product cases get litigated through deposition and summary judgment before settling. Trials are rare but possible when the manufacturer refuses to acknowledge fault.
The three theories of liability
- Design defect. Every unit of the product is dangerous because the design itself is flawed. Codling v. Paglia (1973) established strict liability for design defects in New York. The test asks whether a reasonable manufacturer would have known the design was unsafe.
- Manufacturing defect. A specific unit was made incorrectly while other units of the same design are safe. The standard is strict liability: the manufacturer is liable regardless of fault if the defective unit caused the injury.
- Failure to warn. The product is reasonably designed and manufactured, but the manufacturer failed to adequately warn users of a known risk. New York follows the Restatement (Third) of Torts on this theory. Pharmaceutical cases often rest on failure-to-warn.
Talk to Nick
Free consultation. No fee unless we recover. Twenty-two years on personal injury cases in New York. We evaluate every product-liability inquiry and refer the trial work to a vetted co-counsel firm under written Rule 1.5(g) fee-sharing agreements that the client signs before representation. Call 718-261-0546 or tell us what happened. Hablamos español.
Related: Personal Injury Lawyer NYC · Construction Accidents and Labor Law 240 · Truck Accidents
Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. This page is informational and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is different. The information here reflects general principles of New York personal injury law and is not a substitute for legal advice on your specific situation. Co-counsel arrangements are subject to NY RPC 1.5(g) written-agreement requirements.
Law Offices of Nicholas Rose, PLLC | 102-11 Metropolitan Avenue, Forest Hills, NY 11375 | (718) 261-0546 | nicholas@nroselaw.com
Common questions.
Product liability in New York requires engineering experts (often multiple disciplines), reverse-engineering of the defective product, and the capital to advance hundreds of thousands of dollars in expert costs. We do the initial evaluation, the intake, and the case workup; a vetted New York product-liability trial firm handles the litigation. You get the boutique attention upfront and the resources of a full trial firm for the case work.
Three years from the date of injury under CPLR §214(5). For latent defects (a product that injured you but the defect was not discoverable at the time), the discovery rule can apply: the clock starts when you discovered or reasonably should have discovered the defect caused the injury. Cancer cases from defective pharmaceuticals or implants often turn on this distinction.
Defective vehicles (airbag failures, accelerator defects, rollover risk, tire blowouts); consumer products (kitchen appliances, ladders, power tools, sporting equipment); medical devices (defective hip implants, surgical mesh, IUDs); pharmaceuticals (recalled drugs, defective generics); industrial equipment (forklifts, presses, conveyor systems). We do not take asbestos / mesothelioma cases, those go to dedicated firms.
Do not throw it away, repair it, return it, or let anyone else take it. The product itself is the central piece of evidence. Photograph it, photograph the model number and serial number, store it in a safe place, and call us. Spoliation (loss or destruction of evidence) can wreck the case before it starts.
A design defect means every unit of the product is dangerous because the design itself is flawed (a SUV with a rollover risk no other SUV has). A manufacturing defect means a specific unit was made incorrectly while other units of the same design are safe (a missing weld in your specific airbag). Both are actionable in New York under the strict-products-liability framework set out in Codling v. Paglia and Voss v. Black & Decker.
A failure-to-warn case is the third theory: the product itself is reasonably designed and manufactured, but the manufacturer did not adequately warn users of a known risk. Pharmaceutical cases often rest on failure-to-warn (the drug works but the prescribing label hid a known side-effect risk). NY follows the Restatement (Third) of Torts on this theory.
Free consultation. No fee unless we win.
Call 718-261-0546 or use the form. I answer my own phone during business hours, and the answering service patches urgent calls through after hours.
Twenty-two years on these cases. Boutique New York City practice with a real team behind it. Bilingual concierge on staff. Hablamos español. Arabic spoken on request.