Manufacturers, distributors, and sellers of all kinds of products—from power saws to pacemakers, playground sets, and pharmaceuticals—have a duty. They must design, test, assemble, and warn patients in an honest way that reflects commitment to safety above all else. As you or your loved one has found out, these parties often fall short of this non-negotiable duty.
In Billings, defective products cause devastating injuries every day. From malfunctioning space heaters in Montana’s harsh winters to defective all-terrain vehicles on our rugged landscapes, dangerous products don’t discriminate. At Yellowstone Law, we’ve seen how product defects (and those responsible for them) cause severe economic and non-economic harm. We don’t stand by idly, but instead fight for the victims’ full financial recoveries.
Call Yellowstone Law today at (406) 259-9986 for your free consultation about hiring a Billings, MT, product liability lawyer from our team. Defective products demand justice; we deliver that justice for victims like you.
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Table of Contents
- Yellowstone Law: Legal Services Designed for Success and Delivered with Care
- The Three Defect Types That Cause Despair and Damage for Victims
- Common Types of Defective Products That Cause Injuries
- How Your Attorney from Yellowstone Law Will Prove Your Product Liability Claim
- Recoverable Damages in Product Liability Cases
- Product Liability Cases Are Anything But Routine, Here are Some FAQs
- Call Yellowstone Law Today About Hiring a Billings, MT Product Liability Attorney, Your Recovery Starts With Us
Yellowstone Law: Legal Services Designed for Success and Delivered with Care
Those responsible for the product that injured you showed an utter lack of care for product quality—and, by extension, for you. When you hire Yellowstone Law, you get the opposite experience. Our firm cares for our clients, first and foremost, and we will design and assemble a legal strategy to your specifications.
Product liability cases demand attorneys who understand the technical complexities of defective products and the profound personal impact these injuries have on victims and their families. We do.
There are many other reasons to retain your Billings, MT product liability attorney from our team because:
- At Yellowstone Law, we’ve built our reputation since 1987 by delivering results for Montana families facing their darkest hours.
- Our legal product is built by hard work, an endless learning process (great attorneys are never complacent), and attention to the most important details—unlike negligent manufacturers, we deliver a product we are proud of.
- Our attorneys are proven negotiators and battle-tested litigators who have recovered more than $150 million for our clients.
- We have successfully resolved more than 2,000 cases, which include many defective product cases.
Our attorneys offer more than 81 years of combined experience. When your attorney answers your question or proposes a case strategy, you can trust it. You can also trust that the Yellowstone Law will show you respect and compassion while holding all liable parties accountable—no matter how prominent or well-funded those parties may be.
You’re Never in the Red When You Hire Yellowstone Law
Product liability cases often require substantial upfront investments in expert witnesses, technical analysis, and extensive investigation—costs that can reach tens of thousands of dollars before a case is resolved.
Our contingency fee structure ensures that financial barriers don’t prevent you from pursuing justice against well-funded corporate defendants. With Yellowstone Law, you pay no attorney fees out of your pocket. We ensure you never have to go into the red (spending more money than you have) simply because you want a fair financial recovery.
We get paid if and when we secure a settlement or judgment for you. We are confident in offering this fair arrangement because our track record shows that we deliver the results our clients trust us to get.
The Three Defect Types That Cause Despair and Damage for Victims
Product liability law recognizes three distinct types of defects— the threatening three—that place innocent, unwitting victims at risk of injury, illness, and even death. The severity of the threat depends on the nature of the defect and product, but we know that consumers face unacceptable risk because of:
Design Defects
Some products are designed in a hazardous way. There is the notorious example of the Ford Pinto, which contained a flaw that posed an extreme fire and explosion hazard in the case of a rear-end accident. And still, Ford released the vehicle for financial reasons.
This example shows how:
- Intelligent product design is critical to consumer safety.
- Thorough product testing can reveal dangerous product designs.
- When testing (or other checks and balances) reveal a dangerous design, the manufacturer has a duty not to release the product.
One of our experienced Billings product liability lawyers will determine if the product that harmed you (or a loved one) was dangerous from the blueprint stage.
Manufacturing Defects
Manufacturing defects happen when something goes wrong during production, creating products that don’t match what they were designed to be. Assembly errors, the use of substandard materials, and other missteps during the manufacturing process can result in a well-designed product becoming dangerous.
Failures to Warn (or Instruct)
Though we generally refer to this category of negligence as “failure to warn,” the responsibility of manufacturers (and certain other parties) extends beyond warning of potential dangers. These cases boil down to a simple question: Did the company give you all the information necessary to use the product safely and avoid catastrophic accidents?
The issue isn’t just about slapping warning labels on boxes. Companies need to spell out the real risks, provide clear instructions for using the product properly, and explain how to avoid danger.
Common Types of Defective Products That Cause Injuries
By the time a product is recalled, at least one victim has almost certainly suffered an injury (or worse). We have seen countless examples that prove virtually any product can be hazardous when it contains a defect, and this includes:
- Medical devices and pharmaceuticals: Hip replacements, pacemakers and defibrillators, surgical meshes, and prescription medications with undisclosed ingredients are among the medical devices and pharmaceuticals that have caused severe, and at times fatal, harm to consumers. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) maintains a running tally of drug recalls.
- Consumer products: When manufacturers cut corners on safety, everyday household items can become instruments of injury. We have seen power tools, space heaters, furniture, electronics, and even children’s toys cause serious injury to unsuspecting consumers.
- Motor vehicle components: Even when you’re driving safely, defective auto parts can cause catastrophic accidents. Airbags that don’t deploy, brakes that don’t work, tires that blow without warning, and steering components that fail are some of the most alarming types of defective products.
- Industrial equipment: Workers across Montana rely on equipment and machinery that must function safely under strenuous conditions. Defective workplace products often include construction equipment, agricultural machinery, safety gear, and industrial chemicals that must meet the most rigorous safety testing.
Some products, like power saws, pose a foreseeable danger. Others, like children’s toys, appear totally harmless. In both cases, those who design, stress test, manufacture, and sell the product have a responsibility to protect the consumer—and are liable when they fail to do so.
How Your Attorney from Yellowstone Law Will Prove Your Product Liability Claim
Successfully proving a product liability claim often requires compelling evidence, expert testimony, a cohesive narrative, and other elements. The Yellowstone Law team is ready to make your case by:
- Establishing the product defect: The foundation of any product liability claim is proving that the product was actually defective and dangerous. This often requires expert analysis to demonstrate how the product failed to meet safety standards or perform as consumers would reasonably expect.
- Proving causation: It’s not sufficient to show that a product was defective. We must also prove that the specific defect directly caused your injuries. Your Billings, MT product liability lawyer may work with accident reconstruction experts, medical professionals, and non-negligent manufacturers (who may testify about how the product should have been designed or assembled. These experts will assist your lawyer in proving causation.
- Documenting your damages: Thorough documentation of your damages may include medical bills, proof of your lost income, mental health professionals’ evaluations of your pain and suffering, and your own account of suffering.
When we have proved that a defective product caused you harm, and we have documented that harm, we can then demand the compensation you deserve. Trust the Yellowstone Law team to handle every detail of your case. We will negotiate aggressively (and with the righteous indignation we feel about your preventable injuries) and be ready for trial, should liable parties fight your case.
Recoverable Damages in Product Liability Cases
Product liability injuries often result in catastrophic consequences that affect victims for the rest of their lives. Montana law recognizes various types of damages designed to address both the financial losses and personal suffering caused by defective products, which can include:
- Medical expenses
- Lost income
- Pain and suffering
- Property damage
- Disability costs
- Wrongful death damages
- Punitive damages
Injuries that affect you over the long term, or even permanently, come with added considerations. You might face monitoring costs for ongoing medical surveillance to detect complications from defective products, the cost of home and vehicle modifications, and the indefinite expense of counseling and therapy to address psychological and emotional trauma.
Wrongful Death Claims When Products Kill
When defective products cause fatal injuries, the devastation reverberates throughout families and communities. Montana law allows certain family members to seek compensation when their loved one dies due to product defects, and those family members can include:
- A surviving spouse
- Children
- Parents
- Other dependents
The Yellowstone Law team has always had a soft spot for survivors of wrongful deaths, as we understand the added gravity of these cases. If you need a wrongful death attorney, trust us to demand fair compensation for any:
- Lost future earnings and benefits the deceased would have provided
- Medical and funeral expenses related to the final injury and death
- Loss of services the deceased provided to the family
- Lost inheritance that would have been accumulated over the deceased’s expected lifetime
- Loss of guidance and counsel, which is particularly important when children lose parents
- Loss of consortium for surviving spouses
- Grief and other types of pain and suffering that survivors are enduring
We don’t take any product liability case lightly, but we recognize the added importance of getting justice for someone who has passed away.
Product Liability Cases Are Anything But Routine, Here are Some FAQs
What are the technical and scientific challenges of my case?
Achieving a successful outcome to a product liability case often hinges on complicated engineering, scientific, or medical issues.
What are the substantial financial investments in my case?
Your case costs may include hiring engineers to analyze defective products, medical experts to explain injuries, and economists to calculate damages. Your case may become even more costly if we need to go to trial, and that’s OK—we invest in our cases because we believe every client we represent deserves justice.
Are there well-funded corporate oppositions?
Yes, manufacturers and their insurance companies typically have substantial resources to defend against product liability claims. At Yellowstone Law, we never back down.
Product liability cases present distinctive obstacles that set them apart from other personal injury claims. With our experienced attorneys, ample financial resources, and intricate knowledge of Montana product liability statutes, the Yellowstone Law team is ready to help. We are passionate about what we do, but our job is not easy. Our years of experience, hard-nosed attitudes, and determination to improve our clients’ lives enable us to overcome the most challenging hurdles on the path to justice.
Call Yellowstone Law Today About Hiring a Billings, MT Product Liability Attorney, Your Recovery Starts With Us
Shane D. Colton, Billings, MT Product Liability Attorney
The moments after a product-related injury or wrongful death can be daunting. You might be trying to manage physical pain, mounting medical bills, and the unsettling realization that your life has been changed in a substantial and negative way.
Let Yellowstone Law be a settling force. We will help you make sense of an unfamiliar, distressing situation. Our 81+ years of combined legal experience and track record of recovering over $150 million for clients demonstrate our ability to take on even the most prominent manufacturers and win.
Don’t let corporate negligence go unpunished. Don’t settle for less than full compensation for your injuries. Call Yellowstone Law today at (406) 259-9986 to take the first step toward justice and recovery.
Generally, in Montana, you have 3 years to file a personal injury lawsuit. However, you should always complete your free consultation as soon as possible to protect the value of your case.
Yellowstone Law – Office Location
310 Grand Avenue,
Billings, MT 59101
Call Now For A Free Consultation(406) 259-9986