South Carolina Lawyer Blog

Families have probably heard a lot this year about recalls of defective toys with unsafe lead paint. But as the holidays approach, people buying “toys” for older loved ones should watch out for product defects too. The latest case in point, reported by The State on Nov. 29, is a recall of defective Performax and Wilton brand motorized miter saws whose safety switches can fail, causing the saw to keep running until it’s unplugged and putting users at risk of serious cuts. The defect can also cause electrical problems, which in turn causes it to smoke, spark and trip circuit breakers, and could cause the safety brake to fail.

A miter saw is a rotating blade that the user brings down against an object on a built-in platform to make a short, precise cut. It’s widely used in woodworking, especially for home builders. It cuts very fast and very deeply; it can sever an adult man’s fingers in an instant. Safety switches are there to prevent this type of serious accident, but when they fail, they fail to protect the consumers who trust them. In this case, failure can also cause electrical problems that could lead to a fire, or at least to an expensive and time-consuming work stoppage.

If you’ve already bought one of these defective miter saws, you’re eligible for a refund or replacement; the Consumer Products Safety Commission can help you find out more. But a recall after the fact can’t help South Carolinians who have already suffered a serious injury from the defective saws or other defective consumer products. The only way for people with significant personal physical, financial or emotional losses to ask for justice may be a South Carolina product defects lawsuit. If you’ve been injured by a defective product, call the Louthian Law Firm to learn more about your rights and get a free evaluation of your case.

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The RC2 Corporation announced the recall of over 600,000 of its toys and children’s necklaces Thursday, according to an Associated Press Article dated September 27th.

The RC2 Corp’s “Knights of the Sword” series toys and some of its Thomas And Friend items along with floor puppet theaters and gardening tools and chairs were among the items being recalled. The reason for the recall was the high levels of lead in their surface paint and some of their metal parts.

Earlier this year, on June 13th, RC2 Corp announced the first recall from the Thomas and Friends Product Line of 1.5 Million wooden railway toys. The company has now announced a new recall of five Thomas and Friends toys, totaling about 200,000 toys in all that were not included in the first recall.

Continue reading "Another Child Toy Manufacturer Announces Recalls" »

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The Associated Press reported on May 26, 2007 that government officials are warning people to throw away AMO Complete Moisture Plus Multi-Purpose Solution, used for cleaning and storing soft contact lenses, after an investigation linked it to a rare eye infection. The solution is made by Advanced Medical Optics Inc., a publicly traded company based in Santa Ana, California.

The solution appears to be a factor in cases of Acanthamoeba keratitis, a painful eye infection that can lead to permanent vision loss or blindness.

The CDC and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration are investigating 138 confirmed cases.
CDC officials said people should discard the solution, throw out their current contact lenses and lens storage case, which may harbor the infecting disease.

Doctors first suspected a problem in 2004, when a University of Illinois-Chicago ophthalmologist, Dr. Elmer Tu, noticed more than a dozen cases of the infection.

Continue reading "Another Contact Lens Solution Linked to Eye Infection" »

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According to the Associated Press, the following recalls have been announced:
Approximately 228,000 Ellemenno brand girls’ capri pants with snap roll cuffs which are distributed by Mervyns Company and imported by Azmat Group of Dhaka, Bangladesh have been recalled because the buttons inside the pants' waistbands can become detached and this poses a choking hazard to children. No injuries have been reported. Mervyns can be contacted by phone at 800-637-8967 or by visiting their website.

Approximately 1,500 Currey & Company Table Lamps which are distributed by Currey & Company have been recalled because the light sockets on the lamps have a defect, which poses an electrical shock and fire hazard, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced Thursday. Currey & Company has received 6 reports of their lamps causing circuits to trip and then sparking or catching on fire. No property damage or injuries have been reported at this time. Details of the recall of these lamps can be found by visiting their website.

Details of both recalls can be found at the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

If you or a loved one has suffered injuries due to a defective product, contact a South Carolina Product Liability Lawyer at Louthian Law Firm, P.A., immediately, even if only for an inquiry as to whether or not you may have a case.

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Evenflo Company Inc. cooperating with the US Consumer Product Safety Commission and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), announced a recall last Friday of the Evenflo Embrace™ Infant Car Seat/Carriers. The recall affects about 450,000 infant car seats.
The manufacturer of the defective car seats is Evenflo Company Inc., of Vandalia, Ohio. The defective car seat has caused injuries to children.

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Drug maker Purdue Pharmaceutical, L.P. has agreed to pay $19.5 million to South Carolina and 25 other states to settle a complaint concerning its promotion of the powerful pain killer OxyContin and failure to disclose risk of abuse with the drug.

The action by the drug maker comes in response to a complaint by several state attorney generals who discovered that the company had suggested that doctors prescribe OxyContin to patients every 8 hours instead of the 12 hours approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The settlement also required the pharmaceutical company to discontinue dispensation of the drug in any manner other than approved by the FDA. In a prepared statement the company responded to the settlement, "It has always been Purdue's written policy that promotion of its products must adhere to FDA-approved prescribing information for those products as well as applicable laws.” Additionally Purdue Pharma has agreed to discontinue the practice of paying the sales staff a bonus in direct correlation with the volume of OxyContin prescribed.

Over the years, OxyContin came to prominence in the news when the prescribed drug was discovered to be highly addictived. When the illegal use of the drug produced a heroin-like high, OxyContin was was noted by the Bush administration as one of the nation's most-abused prescription drugs in the war on drugs.

States that took part in the settlement were Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Idaho, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin and t he District of Columbia.

North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper commented on the situation stating, “Drug makers need to give doctors and patients accurate information about their drugs or expect to face the consequences."

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The Associated Press reported on Thursday, May 3, 2007 that Mr. and Mrs. Chung, immigrants from South Korea, opened their own dry cleaning business in Washington, D.C. seven years ago. Unfortunately, the have been dealing with a litigation nightmare for the past two years ever since a Judge sued them for $65 million because they lost a pair of his pants.

The Chungs are so disheartened that they are considering moving back to South Korea, their attorney Chris Manning said. “They’re out a lot of money, but more importantly, incredibly disenchanted with the system” Manning said. “This has destroyed their lives.”

The lawsuit was filed by District of Columbia Administrative Hearing Judge Roy Pearson, who has been representing himself in the case. Judge Pearson did not return phone calls or e-mails as of Wednesday of last week from the Associated Press. According to court filings, the problem began in 2005 when Pearson first became a judge and took several suits for alterations to Custom Cleaners in Northeast Washington DC. A pair of pants from one suit was not ready when he requested it two days later, and appeared to be missing.

Judge Pearson asked the cleaners to pay the full price for the suit which was more than $1000. However, a week later the Chung’s said that the pants had been found and refused to pay. That is when Judge Pearson decided to file a suit.

According to the Chungs’ lawyer the cleaners has made three offers to settle with Judge Pearson. The first offer was for $3,000, then $4,600 and then $12,000. Judge Pearson has refused to settle. One of his claims for damages includes the cost to rent a car ($15,000) every weekend for 10 years to go to another dry cleaner since he no longer wants to patronize the Chungs’ dry cleaners. The bulk of Pearson’s $65 million claim, however, it derived from a strict interpretation of Washington DC’s consumer protection law which fines violators $1,500 per violation per day. According to court papers, Pearson added up 12 violations over 1200 days and multiplied by 3 defendants.

Continue reading "Judge Sues Cleaners for $65 Million for Lost Pants" »

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The Associated Press reported that a total of 7.8 million Magnetix magnetic building sets have been recalled after children swallowed small magnets contained in the sets and were seriously injured. Mega Brands Inc., the company which manufactures the toy sets, recalled 3.8 million of the magnetic building sets in March 2006 after a child died and 4 others were seriously injured after swallowing the magnets. The Product Safety Commission and Mega Brands know of one death, one aspiration and 27 intestinal injuries. The commission received reports of at least 1500 incidents in which the magnets separated from the toy. If more than one magnet is swallowed, the magnets can attach to each other and cause intestinal perforation, infection, or blockage which can be fatal. The hazard was initially thought to be a problem only for children younger than 6 but the reports show that at least 10 injuries involved children between the ages of 6 and 11.

The recall includes all sets except Magnetix sets dated March 31, 2006, that are age labeled “6+” and also contain the statement “CAUTION: Do not ingest or inhale magnets. Attraction of magnets in the body may cause serious injury and require immediate medical care.” The newer sets supposedly have better material and design according to the company. Magnetix sets are sold by toy and arts and craft stores nationwide.

Consumers should contact Mega Brands for replacement toys. For more information call Mega Brands at (800) 779-7122.

If you or a loved one has been injured by an unsafe toy, contact a South Carolina unsafe toy accident attorney at Louthian Law Firm for a free consultation.

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The Associated Press reported that a Montgomery, Alabama jury awarded a paralyzed woman $4 million on Friday, April 20, 2007. Carolyn Thorne, was paralyzed as a result of the tires separating on her SUV after visiting a Wal-Mart Service Center. The tires had been recalled in 2002 by Continental Tire Company and she had taken her SUV to Wal-Mart to have the tires replaced. Wal-Mart failed to replace her spare tire which she was using during the crash that paralyzed her.

Ms. Thorne had her car serviced at Wal-mart on 9 separate occasions after the recall and was never told that the 5th tire was also defective.

The jury awarded her $2 million in punitive damages and $2 million in compensatory damages.

If you have been in an automobile accident due to tire tread separation, please contact a South Carolina tire recall lawyer at Louthian Law Firm for a free consultation.

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The Associated Press has reported that H.S. Joy of Love, by Jen-On Herbal Science International of City of Industry, California has been recalled because the product contains Piperadino Vardenafil, an analog of Vardenafil, which is a FDA approved drug used for erectile dysfunction.

The analog may interact with nitrates found in some prescription drugs, such as nitroglycerin, and may lower blood pressure to dangerous levels. People with diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol or heart disease often take nitrates.

The supplement is sold nationwide in a 12 capsule pack. Individuals who have this product in their possession should stop using it immediately and, if they experience any adverse side effects should contact a physician.

Unused portions of the supplement should be returned to the manufacturer for a refund by calling (626) 333-9998 for instructions on how to return the product.

If you have suffered serious side effects associated with taking H.S. Joy of Love, contact a South Carolina dangerous drug attorney at Louthian Law Firm for a free consultation.

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The insurance industry reported on Thursday, March 29, 2007 that new crash test results show that head restraints in several passenger vehicles provided marginal or poor protection against neck injuries and whiplash. In the simulated rear crash test at 20 mph only 22 of 75 vehicles received the top score of “good” from the Virginia based Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

If you or a loved one has been the victim of a serious injury as the result of a faulty head rest, please call a South Carolina defective head restraint attorney at the Louthian Law Firm.

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