Philadelphia Injury Attorney Blog

Carter Scott Shields, the Mayor of Rutledge, PA, died in a tragic skydiving accident in Gloucester County, New Jersey yesterday when his main parachute failed to deploy and his emergency chute did not fully inflate, according to witnesses. The Mayor was an experienced and avid skydiver. Skydiving and parachute accidents happen all too frequently with many victims being catastrophically injured or killed due to a product defect or malfunction . Our hearts and prayers go out to the family of Carter Scott Shields. Click here for more information on this tragic event.

Recently, the lawyers of Reiff & Bily have joined forces with the legendary Beasley Firm and collectively have been awarded in excess of $2 billion dollars in settlements, awards, or verdicts for their clients. In addition to being an attorney and physician, Jim Beasley is also a pilot who has been flying since the age of 16 and understands what can go wrong in a skydiving or aviation accident. We have years of experience in personal injury, product liability, and wrongful death cases. If you or a loved one has been catastrophically injured or killed in a skydiving accident or aviation accident, put experience on your side. Contact the experienced Pennsylvania skydiving accident and aviation accident attorneys of the Beasley Reiff Law Group toll free at (800) 588-0130 or online at www.beasleyreifflawgroup for a free, no obligation consultation.

I wrote an article a few weeks ago entitled Recalls, Recalls, Recalls, What’s Going On?. Recently an abundance of recalls has been initiated by product manufacturers or by the government regulatory agencies. Typically a recall is only issued when evidence is presented that the product has a potentially dangerous defect that can cause a catastrophic injury or wrongful death to the customers. By the time of the recall, many innocent individuals have been catastrophically injured or killed by the product.

As an experienced Philadelphia product liability and defective product attorney who has successfully fought for the rights of injured consumers for over 3 decades, we welcome the fact that manufacturers are coming forth to recall a product once they are aware of the danger. However, there are still many dangerous products in the marketplace that continue to catastrophically injure and kill innocent children and other consumers.

Since 1979 when I first started to litigate product liability cases, manufacturers would go to great lengths to cover up any and all documentation concerning defects are they were more concerned with shareholders than consumer safety. I am not so sure that the situation is greatly different today due to the fact that most times when our skilled Pennsylvania product liability lawyers resolve a claim, manufacturers still insist on confidentially and no publicity.

Continue reading " Product Recalls Represent Only The tip Of The Iceberg Of Defective Products On The Marketplace " »

The experienced defective product and catastrophic injury lawyers of the Beasley Reiff Law Group salute the United States government in their launch of a public database that allows people to report and search safety complaints on thousands of products from cribs to toys to power tools. The new site, , is overseen by the Consumer Product Safety Commission and went live as scheduled on Friday, March 11, 2011. The database allows individuals to file reports of injury or potential harm about household products, baby gear, and more. In the coming weeks, consumers will be able to file reports with the agency.

The Pennsylvania product defect lawyers of the Beasley Reiff Law Group have been representing catastrophically injured and wrongfully killed consumers since 1957. Our experienced product liability lawyers have been awarded in excess of $2 billion dollars and have recovered hundreds of verdicts, settlements, and awards in excess of $1 million dollars.

A peaceful Sunday afternoon picnic and barbecue kicking off the spring season in Charleston, South Carolina turned into a horrific scene of tragedy when a miniature train overturned in an amusement park. Benjamin Easler, age 6, was on the train with his father, Dr. Dwight Easler, a local pastor, and his mother and two brothers. The miniature train turned over and Benjamin was fatally injured. The accident happened at approximately 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 19, 2011, an hour after the train amusement had opened on the first day of the amusement park season. What appeared to be a simple and innocent amusement ride resulted in the ultimate nightmare. Basically, the track of the miniature train had circled the park’s playground area with speeds of no more than 10 mph. The train had been in operation since 1953 with no major accidents. The train derailed and came off the tracks, overturned, and people were thrown from the train. Sources indicate that pictures of the mangled wreckage showed huge chunks of metal lying around as if the train had been split in two. Our heartfelt thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families.

Unbelievably I was a witness to a very similar accident a few summers back when a few children were killed as a result of another seemingly innocent amusement ride malfunction in Ocean City, New Jersey. In the Ocean City, New Jersey amusement park accident, the cars also jumped the tracks resulting in the deaths of several young and innocent children. Unfortunately with the downturn in the economy many theme parks have cut corners on safety, emphasizing profitability instead. Amusement park and carnival accidents often involve complex theories of law regarding experience and technical expertise. The families of the victims would be well served to contact an experienced amusement park accident attorney to fully investigate their cases to determine what parties are responsible and whether or not there was a product defect. Our experienced Pennsylvania-based amusement park accident lawyers are well aware of the new thrill rides, as well as the simplest of rides, are not safe and cause all too many catastrophic injuries and fatalities. We are also well aware that because of the high number of claims, amusement park owners aggressively fight claims.

Recently the Pennsylvania amusement park lawyers of Reiff & Bily have joined forces with the lawyers of the Beasley Firm to form the Beasley Reiff Law Group. Our experienced amusement park attorneys have been awarded over $2 billion dollars since 1955 and have secured hundreds of settlements, verdicts, and awards in excess of $1 million dollars. For a free, no obligation consultation contact us online at www.reiffandbily.com or toll free at 800-421-9595.

When my wife was pregnant with our second child, she craved anything with salt. When she was 32 weeks into the pregnancy, her feet and hands started to swell, unlike our first pregnancy when she only craved cantaloupes. Was her swelling due to her salt intake or was it preeclampsia?
As a father of five, I know that each one of my wife’s pregnancies were different. Each pregnancy exhibited completely different signs, symptoms, feelings, or cravings. Are you expected to know what feelings are a sign of trouble with your pregnancy? No. It is the responsibility of your obstetrician, physician, nurse practitioner, or nurse midwife to determine if your symptoms or complaints are something to worry about and treat.

If your doctor, nurse practitioner, or midwife do not diagnose or treat your pre-eclampsia or eclampsia, you can go on to develop seizures, placental abruption, eye problems, bleeding, liver damage, stroke, or even death. In addition, it may also cause a lack of blood supply and oxygen to your baby or cerebral palsy.

For the past 53 years, the Beasley medical malpractice law firm has successfully won personal injury, medical malpractice, and wrongful death cases with proven results. The Beasley wrongful death law firm is nationally known and well respected for the $2 billion it has been awarded for their clients. In addition to their experienced attorneys, they also have on staff two physicians and three registered nurses. Two of their nurses have over 30 years of bedside nursing experience caring for pregnant women who had preeclampsia, or eclampsia. Our collective knowledge assisted in obtaining two of the largest medical negligence verdicts in Pennsylvania history, $100 million and $55 million, as well as countless other multimillion dollar judgments and settlements.

Continue reading " Our Experienced Medical Malpractice Lawyers Know What Swelling Is Normal During Pregnancy And What Swelling May Be Preeclampsia " »

According to news sources, the attorney for one of the catholic priests charged with raping alter boys has come out swinging against the victim. A Grand Jury report accused the priest of raping a then 14-year old boy in the summer of 1996. The defense attorney for the priest claimed that the victim who has had a slippery slope backwards in life, is not a credible witness. As an experienced Pennsylvania sexual abuse attorney who has handled some high profile cases against psychiatrists, medical providers, and clergy and who has represented victims of sexual predators, I am not surprised to learn of the posture of the defense attorney. It is a common defense technique in almost all sexual abuse cases, to portray the victim of the predator as a liar and not a credible source of information. What I find more amazing and more hypocritical is why it took so long for the Archdiocese to finally take legal action and suspend the accused priests. The Church evidently failed to do the right thing until its hand was forced. It was only last week that Cardinal Justin Rigali suspended 21 priests in the Philadelphia Archdiocese after they had been accused of sexual abuse or other improper behavior involving children. The accusations against these priests have evidently been known to the Archdiocese under Rigali and his predecessor Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua for years and in some cases decades according to news sources and investigations.

Since the first Grand Jury report on sexual abuse in the Archdiocese (2005), Cardinal Rigali repeatedly assured his flock that there were no priests in active service known to have abused children. However, the facts indicate otherwise. Apparently 21 priests in active service, who are now considered so dangerous to children, that their immediate suspension was warranted. Obviously, the truth according to a recent article in The Philadelphia Inquirer is that the suspensions only occurred because of last month’s Grand Jury report which exposed the fact that priests were in active service and posing a danger to children. If not but for this Grand Jury report, there probably would have been no suspensions.

For years, news stories have surfaced regarding children that have been raped by members of the clergy and yet the clergy members have been repeatedly protected because law enforcement agencies, legislatures, and media failed miserably to expose these crimes and take steps to stop them.

Continue reading " Why Is It That The Victims Always Get Blamed In Sexual Abuse Cases? " »

After a commercial airline pilot innocently landed her Airbus A-320 improperly causing damage to the aircraft, aviation officials in India grounded her. An investigation revealed that her paperwork was a fake and that she never passed the airline transport pilot license (ATPL) exam and it sparked an investigation by aviation authorities into the documentation of other pilots which revealed that two additional pilots were flying with phony licenses. Although this happened on Indigo, an Indian airline from India, I am concerned as a frequent flyer and as an experienced aviation accident attorney who often flies foreign airline. It was stated by news sources that the discovery of invalid papers worried local Indian officials who were dealing with a booming airline industry who often claimed that many low cost carriers were aggressively competing for pilots.

As an ">experienced aviation accident attorney, I can state that safety can never be compromised and airlines must never, ever place profitability above consumer safety. Although I am not aware of this situation occurring on American airlines, it does raise an eyebrow when I consider how many foreign aircraft and foreign airplanes I fly on throughout my career.

In the last month and a half, there have been nearly 20 recalls concerning potential manufacturing and product defects on automobiles. This is normally boring information to the ordinary news reader or consumer. As an experienced Philadelphia product liability and automotive defect lawyer who has successfully fought for the rights of injured consumers since 1979, I salute the integrity of manufacturers coming forth to recall a product once they are aware of a danger. Just a few years ago, it seemed to me that manufacturers would go to great lengths to cover up any and all defects putting profitability ahead of consumer safety.

Recently the Beasley Reiff Law Group was formed consisting of a nationally renowned experienced group of Pennsylvania product liability attorneys with more than a half a decade of record breaking success representing clients who have been catastrophically injured or wrongfully killed in Pennsylvania and throughout the United States as a result of using dangerous or defective products. To the uninitiated reader of recalls, it would seem that products are getting more dangerous. However, it is this experienced defective product attorney’s opinion that the vast majority of product recalls are due to defects in design and manufacturers now recognize that it is time to put safety above profitability in response to increased regulatory pressure from federal agencies and ultimately record shaking product liability and class action lawsuits and verdicts.

Manufacturers of defective products can no longer act with ignorance against the consumer or they will be punished. Most recalls stem around inadequacy of warning and instruction, manufacturing defects, and defective design. As an experienced product liability attorney who has played out many of these issues in our courtrooms, I feel that trial lawyers in conjunction with government authorities are finally driving the message home to manufacturers. Make a safer product or you will ultimately be punished.

Recently the product liability attorneys of Reiff & Bily teamed with the legendary Beasley Firm who have represented consumers injured or wrongfully killed by defective products since 1956. Our award winning defective product lawyers of The Beasley Reiff Law Group have collectively been awarded in excess of $2 billion dollars for over a half century and have recovered hundreds of awards, verdicts, and settlement exceeding $1 million dollars.
If you or a loved one has been injured or killed as a result of a defective product, contact us online at www.reiffandbily.com or toll free a 1-800-421-9595.

On the evening of October 22nd and 23rd, Joseph Finley claimed that his wife Laura was murdered inside the Biltmore Hotel where he and his wife had checked in as paying guests when he was in Los Angeles auditioning for “America’s Got Talent". News sources indicate that Laura Finley was beaten to death inside the Millennium Biltmore Hotel. Joe Finley alleged that it was because of “the luxury hotel’s shoddy security". A complaint was filed against Millennium and Copthorne Hotels LLC d/b/a Millennium Biltmore Hotel. It was alleged that the Biltmore’s 683 guest rooms were booked “at or near capacity" the night Laura Finley was killed but Finley alleges that there was inadequate security because the hotel was remodeling its first and second floors which had become a crash pad for transients. Finley further alleges that the Biltmore knew of the trespasses and “other serious crimes against hotel guests and their property, including but not limited to assaults with deadly weapons, thefts, and other disturbances by transients and other uninvited parties". Finley also claims that the dangers were obvious, “as evidenced by the following items scattered on those two floors: (1) open alcohol bottles, (2) empty food containers, (3) filthy clothing, (4) cigarette butts, (5) wrappers, (6) bottles full of urine, and (7) dirty blankets. More telling, he claims, is the door which lead to the street was propped open by a piece of brick that was tied to that door by a shoestring. During their first night at the Biltmore, Finley claims his wife was locked out of her room and in the morning a Biltmore security officer found her at the bottom of the staircase, naked from the waist up wearing only pants inside out with her diamond rings missing. Finley claims his wife was “murdered by a transient or uninvited third party who gained access to the defendant Biltmore Hotel through the unsecured floor on the first floor of the hotel which was near where Laura Finley’s body was found. Finley and his three children by their lawyers demanded damages for wrongful death and negligence.

Inadequate and negligent security legal cases involve the failure of business proprietors such as hotel and motel owners and operators to implement reasonable and ordinary security measures for the protection of their customers from crime necessary for the protection of customers. Safety and privacy of hotel and motel guests should be the top priority for owners and operators. However, this many times is not the case. Usually we hear about an inadequate security case after an easily avoidable tragedy occurs.

Continue reading " Man Alleges Hotel Responsible For His Wife’s Murder As She Was A Guest " »

As an amusement park and theme park accident attorney who has handled some significant amusement park accident cases since 1979, a recent case highlighted what I have known for a long time - namely the safety of our children and unsuspecting innocent individuals is often left to the eyes, ears, and cautions of ride operators that are not always on the ball or paying attention.

In the case at hand, ride operator Charles Carnell, entered a no plea contest and was convicted on a felony charge (however he will not serve any prison time) due to the fact that when Mr. Carnell was the ride operator at Wisconsin’s Dells Thrill Park then 12-year old Teagan Marti was accidentally dropped 100 feet to the ground and severely injured. According to the police, Mr. Carnell failed to communicate with a co-worker that the ride’s safety net was ready to catch Marti before releasing the girls. The operator Carnell told investigators he “just blacked out at the time". Under the plea, Carnell paid $200 in court costs and also had to submit a DNA sample. A seemingly small price to pay compared to the damage sustained by the 13-year old victim and her family. Operator error is often a cause for many amusement park accidents. Many times, particularly with the downturn in the economy, high school and college students or foreign exchange individuals working on a temporary basis are entrusted to operate amusement rides with minimal training. Many of the cases that the lawyers of the Pennsylvania amusement park accident law firm of Reiff & Bily we have found operators to be talking on cell phones, trying to pick up woman, under the influence of intoxicating substances including but not limited to drugs and/or alcohol. With the downturn in the economy, we have found that many theme parks and amusement parks have cut corners on safety and no longer properly supervise or staff unload positions of rides.

The accomplished Pennsylvania amusement park attorneys of Reiff & Bily have recently joined forces with the legendary Beasley Firm and collectively together have been awarded in excess of $2 billion dollars since 1957. Our aggressive amusement park injury legal team will bring wrongdoers to justice and achieve the best results for you and your family. If you have been injured at an amusement park or theme park, please contact one of our experienced amusement park attorneys immediately at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.

The driver of a 1998 Ford Winstar, Eric Polston, was paralyzed in December 2005 when his vehicle began to rollover. Although the driver was wearing a seat belt during the course of the a href="http://www.reiffandbily.com/lawyer-attorney-1325464.html">van rollover, he was ejected from the vehicle and sustained paralyzing injuries. A product liability claim was brought against the Ford Motor Company focusing on a defective design of the seat belt buckle and particularly the release button housed within the buckle of the restraint system. Plaintiff’s lawyers argued that the design utilized by Ford featured a protruding button. The top of the button was located above the top of the buckle permitting easier access to the button. The protrusion of the button renders the design of the buckle defective and unreasonably dangerous because it presents an unnecessary hazard for inadvertent release. By the late 1990's, the entire automobile industry including Ford moved away from the protruding buckle to a safer flush design.

If you or a loved one has sustained a catastrophic injury or wrongful death due to a defectively designed product, please feel free to contact one of the experienced Pennsylvania product liability lawyers of Reiff & Bily. Effective January 1, 2011, the Pennsylvania product liability law of Reiff & Bily has joined forces with the legendary Beasley Firm and collectively since 1958, both firms have been awarded in excess of $2 billion dollars representing the rights of catastrophically injured individuals throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and United States. For a free, no obligation consultation contact us online at www.reiffandbily.com or toll free at 1-800-421-9595.

Philadelphia has been in the headlines once again concerning clergy abuse. The Archdiocese announced on Tuesday, March 8th that 21 priests would be put on leave because of allegations that they sexually abused or behaved improperly with minors. Unfortunately, we believe that the Archdiocese acted too late and only responded after the fact when the Philadelphia Grand Jury found that 37 local priests were serving in the ministry despite accusations of questionable behavior.

Under Pennsylvania law, an individual is entitled to bring a civil action arising from childhood sexual abuse if he or she is under 18 at the time the cause of action occurred and the individual shall have a period of 12 years after attaining 18-years of age in which to commence an action for damages regardless of whether the individual files a criminal complaint regarding the childhood sexual abuse.

As a Pennsylvania sexual abuse attorney who has prosecuted many sexual assault cases whether they be by physicians, teachers, or clergy, it appears that sexual abuse offenses continue to increase in frequency and often go unpunished. The common thread that seems to follow through many of our sexual assault cases involves an inappropriate molestation, rape, or sexual assault by a person in a position of perceived power or authority who acts in a predatory manner towards a typically inexperienced, innocent, and vulnerable younger victim. Typically it involves one of the most atrocious betrayals that one can imagine if a religious leader, teacher, or doctor.

The sexual abuse attorneys of The Beasley Reiff Law Group have handled some of the most high profile sexual assault cases in the country. Our skilled sexual abuse lawyers recognize these offenses are some of the most insidious and devastating crimes and behaviors to inflict upon a child much less an adult or other person with life long psychiatric and psychological ramifications. Our skilled and experienced sexual abuse victim lawyers understand that a sexual assault can easily qualify as one of the most traumatic situations in a person’s entire life and can lead to a complete downward spiral and significant post-traumatic stress disorders. I also personally believe that as an experienced sexual abuse lawyer that such exploitation must not go unpunished. Sexual abuse victims have the legal right to sue the predators who harm them as well as institutions that made it possible, did not stop them, or tried to hide it. Timing is especially critical due to limiting statutes of limitations. Our sexual abuse lawyers work with a team of caring, clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, and medical experts who will perform a confidential case evaluation dedicated to helping victims of sexual abuse. Sexual abuse lawyers of Reiff & Bily have recently joined forces with the legendary Beasley Firm who have collectively been awarded in excess of $2 billion dollars since 1956 representing the rights of catastrophically injured consumers. Our sexual abuse lawyers have a long history representing some of the most high profile sexual abuse claims in Pennsylvania. For a free no obligation and confidential consultation, please contact us online at www.reiffandbily.com or www.beasleyfirm.com or toll free at 1-800-421-9595.

I recently read a story concerning a school janitor convicted of having sex with teenagers in Downingtown West High School. According to news sources, the janitor was a 25-year old former Downingtown West High School quarterback and was convicted on multiple sex offenses against three girls he befriended while working as a janitor at the school.

As a sexual abuse attorney who has prosecuted many sexual assault cases whether they be by physicians, teachers, or clergy, it appears that sexual abuse offenses continue to increase in frequency. As an experienced sexual assault attorney, I notice a common thread that seems to follow through many of our sexual assault cases. These cases typically involve an inappropriate molestation, rape, or assault by a person in a position of perceived power or authority who acts as a predator towards a typically inexperienced and vulnerable younger victim. Typically it involves one of the most atrocious betrayals one can imagine in a religious leader, teacher, or doctor. As a sexual abuse attorney who has personally handled high profile sexual assault cases, I am well aware that these offenses are some of the most insidious and devastating crimes and behaviors to inflict upon a child, adolescent or other person. I personally understand that a sexual assault can easily qualify as one of the most difficult and traumatic situations in a person’s entire life leading to a complete downward spiral and significant and post-traumatic stress disorders. In short, most sexual assault victims have the wind knocked out of their sails in an emotional and physically demonstrative manner often with severe economic and socially adverse consequences.

The events of sexual misconduct by teachers and other school officials, including janitors, continues to be an all too common occurrence that is vastly under reported in both public and private schools. Other investigations have revealed that many educational institutions have historically been very lax about background checks and screening applicants for teaching positions or other employment, including but not limited to janitors and support staff. We have also found that many school districts try to cover up sexual abuse by quietly dismissing a teacher, transferring them, or getting rid of the offending employee.

Our Pennsylvania sexual abuse lawyers recognize such exploitation must not go unpunished. Victims have the legal right to sue the predators who harm them, as well as the institutions that made it possible, didn’t stop it, or tried to hide it. Timing is especially critical when the abuse occurs in a public school as victims typically have a limited period of time to provide notice of their intent to file a lawsuit when the defendant is a government entity. Our sexual abuse lawyers work with a team of caring clinical psychologists and psychiatrists who will perform a confidential case evaluation dedicated to helping victims of sexual abuse. The sexual abuse lawyers of Reiff & Bily have recently joined forces with the legendary Beasley Firm who have collectively been awarded in excess of $2 billion dollars since 1958. Our sexual abuse lawyers have resolved some of the most high profile sexual abuse claims in Pennsylvania and in the United States. For a no obligation, free consultation, please contact us online at www.reiffandbily.com or toll free at 1-800-421-9595.

Shortly following a Supreme Court ruling last week in Williams v. Mazda, which involved defective seat belts, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that federal car safety standards do not preempt state tort claims over injuries when federal regulations are aimed at setting minimal safety standards. The high court held that plaintiffs cannot be barred from seeking damages at a state level.

In a South Carolina case, plaintiff Mary Robin Priester (whose son James Priester was killed in a crash of a 1997 Ford F-150 in 2002 when he was ejected from the vehicle) alleged that the truck was defectively designed because side windows were made of tempered glass which shattered on impact rather than laminated glass which holds together on impact and is designed to prevent ejections.

NHTSA at one point considered barring laminated glass in the side windows of all vehicles but rejected the proposal in 2002 finding it would be too expensive for manufacturers. NHTSA has repeatedly cited the safety benefits of laminated glass and has said that requiring installation of the same in all vehicles would be too expensive for manufacturers.

As a Philadelphia product liability attorney who has worked on a number of vehicle ejection cases, I am very familiar with the argument and have litigated claims alleging the safety of laminated glass. As the result of the Supreme Court ruling, it is my hope that individuals and families of victims that were killed or catastrophically injured as a result of manufacturers defects in automobiles will not have their right to hearings denied in the state courts and that judges and juries will recognize that federal regulations are only aimed at setting minimum safety standards and do not preempt state tort claims for the unlucky victims who are catastrophically injured or killed as a result of a defective design.

Continue reading " U.S. Supreme Court Renders The Second Decision In Weeks Ruling That Federal Safety Standards Do No Preempt State Tort Claims Over Injuries Caused By Alleged Vehicle Defect " »

A recent news story published in The Philadelphia Inquirer on February 23, 2011 noted that PECO technicians found an illegal electrical hookup in a two story building at 503 West Dolphin Street which may have caused a fire.

As an experienced catastrophic injury and premises liability attorney who has represented victims and the families of victims injured or killed in fires, or have been burned due to illegal and improper electrical wiring, I am all too familiar with this scenario. Unfortunately, in a tightened economy, landlords and building owners try to take every shortcut they can take in order to save money. Our investigations in many cases has revealed that many times landlords or property owners retain the services of non-licensed electricians or contractors without giving a second thought to the safety of the residents. Believe it or not most fires are caused by improper (illegal) electrical connections or overloading. Pennsylvania, like most other states, has strict laws forbidding anyone from doing illegal electrical work. Most times electrical work in apartment houses or homes needs to be inspected, and a licensed and proper contractor is required to have insurance against damages caused by their work.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission estimates that there are over 50,000 residential home or apartment fires each year due to defective wiring resulting in hundreds of civilian deaths and thousands of catastrophic injuries, as well as a half billion dollars a year in property damage.

The defective product and catastrophic injury lawyers of Reiff & Bily have joined forces with the legendary Beasley Firm on January 1, 2011 focusing on helping people with burn injuries caused by defective wiring, defective products, or defective or unsafe electrical systems. Since 1958, both The Beasley Firm and Reiff & Bily law firm have utilized extensive experience in handling catastrophic injury and death cases with the use of experts and investigators who are nationally recognized in fields of combustion and defective products.

If you or a loved one has been injured or killed as a result of a fire or defective product, it is important that you seek the services of an attorney familiar with the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and a track record of success. The lawyers of both Reiff & Bily and The Beasley Firm has a tremendous success record fighting large manufacturing corporations and pursuit of justice for clients who have been burned and those victims and their families who died due to fires caused by defective and recalled products. For more information, contact us online at www.reiffandbily.com or toll free at 1-800-421-9595.

In an attempt to protect consumers from dangerous or potentially dangerous products, Ford Motor Company recalled more than 31,000 vehicles on Wednesday, March 2, 2011 due to the risk of possible fuel leak and electrical issues according to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration website. Ford recalled 23,688 Ford Rangers stating that the protective layer of the engine line fuel line near the throttle body shield may not be properly installed. It was stated that this could eventually lead to a fuel leak but Ford stated it was not aware of any fires related to this problem.

In a separate recall notice, Ford stated it would recall 88,022 spanning 7 models from the model year 2011 because the electrical system may short and prompt fires. The models affected by the recall include Ford Edge Crossover, Lincoln MKX, and the F series line of pickup trucks F-150, F-250, F-350, F-450, and F-550. Consumers have the right to expect that the products they purchase are safe for use or consumption. Getting in a car accident is dangerous enough without having to worry about the possibility of your car being engulfed in flames due to a design defect. Fuel fed fires due to design or manufacturing defects are a real danger and often can do more harm than the actual crash.

The Pennsylvania fuel fed fire lawyers, automotive defect, and product liability lawyers of Reiff & Bily have been researching and handling numerous automobile defect design cases since 1979. The National Fire Protection Association reported that during 2004 fire departments responded to an estimated 266,500 highway type vehicle fires which claimed 520 lives and cost almost a billion dollars in direct property damage. Ford hit the headlines originally with fuel fed fires with Ford Pinto litigation. The Ford Pinto defect was in the design of a strap on the gas tank that made it susceptible to leakage and fire in a low to moderate speed collisions. We salute Ford’s effort in recall the vehicles in the March 2nd notice. The best way to prevent a fuel fed fire is to make sure the vehicle is inspected. Some of the causes of fuel fed or crash fires are poorly placed gas tanks, unshielded fuel systems, faulty wiring such as ignition system wires and other electrical system wiring which can short out and spark, fluid leaks from damaged fuel lines, hoses, caps, and filters, or exhaust system fires resulting from improperly installed muffler and exhaust systems. A car crash is not always necessary to cause a fire and the majority of fuel fed fires by poor manufacturing or car and truck design defects. These defects include filter cap neck separation, fuel fire from an added fuel tank that is not protected, fuel line tearing or separation of the fuel line from the carburetor, fuel pump, or fuel tank, fuel tank placement over the trunk floor, lack of barrier or shield to prevent a fuel tank rupture, lack of a fuel cutoff tank, lack of anti-syphoning device to prevent continued gas flows after a collision, puncture of a fuel tank because of poor design, protruding screw or object, or seam weld failure in the fuel tank.

Continue reading " Electrical Issues, Fuel Leak Risks, And Possibility Of Fires Prompt Another Ford Recall-Experienced Product Liability Lawyer Salutes Ford " »

According to news sources, House Republicans are trying to block the launch of a new database which is aimed at protecting consumers by giving them access to product safety complaints within weeks of their submission to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

As an experienced Pennsylvania product liability attorney who has represented individuals and families who have sustained catastrophic injuries and death as a result of using defective products, I find any attempt by lawmakers to kill the new public database to be outrageous. The purpose of the database was to help innocent consumers avoid the risks that follow the use of defective products based upon reports submitted from consumers, healthcare providers, death certificates, and media accounts. According to The Washington Post, language blocking funding for the database was added to a recent White House budget resolution by Rep. Mike Pompeo, a Kansas Republican. Pompeo claimed that the database would “drive jobs overseas", increase the cost for manufacturers and consumers, and be a plaintiffs’ lawyers bar dream. I wonder if Rep. Pompeo or other advocates of the proposal to block funding for the database would feel the same way if they had lost their wife, child, or other loved one due to the rollover of a defectively designed vehicle that manufacturers knew was dangerous yet continued to market.

Unfortunately as a trial lawyer greedy for justice, I think it is time for lawmakers and manufacturers to recognize that safety should never be an option and that safety always triumphs profitability and the consumer’s safety should always come first. Lawmakers and manufacturers of defective products have a social and legal responsibility to the consuming public to manufacture safe products and to immediately inform them when a defect is noted. The blockage of such information to the public will lead to shocking stories of needless deaths and injuries caused by manufacturers and industries putting profits over people and avoids accountability.

Product liability lawyers and trial lawyers are the unsung heroes of society and many times the only voice for the vulnerable and powerless. We must do everything we can to insure that the consuming public is regularly kept informed of defective products within the market place when the knowledge becomes available.

If you or a loved one has sustained a catastrophic personal injury or wrongful death due to a defectively designed product, please feel free to contact one of the experienced Pennsylvania product liability lawyers of Reiff & Bily. Effective January 1, 2011, the Pennsylvania product liability law of Reiff & Bily has joined forces with the legendary Beasley Firm and collectively since 1958, both firms have been awarded in excess of $2 billion dollars representing the rights of catastrophically injured individuals throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and United States. For a free, no obligation consultation contact us online at www.reiffandbily.com or toll free at 1-800-421-9595.