Philadelphia Defective Medical Device Lawyers

Filing a Medical Product Liability Claim

When a defective medical device has compromised your health and well-being, you deserve to be compensated for your injuries. In order to do that, it is crucial that you contact a qualified Philadelphia defective medical device lawyer who will help you understand your legal rights and guide you through the claims process. At Brookman, Rosenberg, Brown & Sandler, we are familiar with the steps manufacturers take in order to cut corners, bypass testing or hide a product’s risks from consumers. These actions can have dangerous, often fatal consequences. We have experience to negotiate the terms of your settlement and hold the manufacturer responsible for its actions.

Proving Your Claim

The first step in the claims process is to actually prove that you have a claim. To do this, you will have to prove three things in order to have a successful lawsuit:

You were, in fact, injured.

The medical device used in your procedure was defectively designed, marketed or manufactured.

Your injury was the result of the defect.

Three Categories of Product Liability Claims

All product liability claims, including those resulting from medical device injuries, fall into one of the following three categories:

Design Defects: These devices have been manufactured properly, but have serious design flaws, making it potentially dangerous to use on patients. If a victim can prove that the manufacturer knew about the design flaw, they may receive a more substantial financial compensation.
Marketing Defects: These devices include those that provide inadequate or inaccurate warnings about the potential danger associated with the device. In addition, these can include products that do not provide proper instructions on how to safely and appropriately use the device.
Manufacturing Defects: Devices in this category are designed and marketed properly, but became defective as a result of a manufacturing error, a shipping problem or an error at the hospital or doctor’s office.

Defective medical device lawsuits fall under what is known as products liability law. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) imposes strict regulations on new products. When a manufacturer is negligent in following these regulations, or is not forthcoming about a product’s safety issues, their negligence can expose consumers to serious risks. An experienced defective medical device lawyer can help determine whether you have a strong case and develop the best course of action.

In addition, your legal counsel can anticipate how a medical device company will try to defend themselves, and be proactive in planning an aggressive defense. For example, your defective medical device lawyer can assist with the following legal issues.

Unavoidably Unsafe Products: Products in this category are those that cannot be made safe for their intended use. While potentially unsafe and dangerous, they are not considered defective, which is why it is difficult to challenge an unavoidably unsafe device that has an appropriate warning. An experienced lawyer can present information showing how the manufacturer could have made the device safer or marketed it more responsibly.
Medical Malpractice: mistake made by a medical professional. For example, a doctor may have ignored the safety warnings of a device or failed to properly warn the patient of any safety issues.

Filing Your Claim

Oftentimes, you will have the option of filing your claim in state or federal court, depending on the specifics of your case. Your defective medical device lawyer will help you decide on the best place to file and start the process of gathering medical records and other supporting evidence. In some cases, you may have the option of joining a class action lawsuit, which occurs when a number of people are injured by the same product. At Brookman, Rosenberg, Brown & Sandler we will also explain the pros and cons of joining a class action lawsuit versus filing an individual lawsuit.