Defective & Dangerous Products

• Organ Donor Infected With HIV

  Steve Klearman | November 19, 2007 2:54 PM | 0 CommentsReno, NV

  A 30-year-old woman was one of four patients infected with HIV and hepatitis after an organ transplant.According to a Yahoo! News Article dated November 16, 2007, the woman was not informed that the donor engaged in high-risk activities and, after the transplant, she was not immediately tested for HIV. These two circumstances put the University of Chicago, where the procedure was done, and the...

• Energy Drinks May Speed Heart, Boost Blood Pressure

  Steve Klearman | November 14, 2007 12:26 PM | 0 CommentsReno, NV

  Ever wonder if a Red Bull could mess with your physiology? A better question for anyone who's ever had one might be: ever wonder how it couldn't?A new study suggests a potential correlation between energy drinks and heart and blood pressure issues. Yahoo cites a new story from Will Dunham at Reuters: The increasingly popular high-caffeine beverages called energy drinks may do more than give...

• Nike Recalls Chin Straps

  Steve Klearman | November 13, 2007 6:45 PM | 0 CommentsReno, NV

  Apparently, it's the year of the product recall.Now it's Nike, with their recall of 235,000 football helmet chin straps after receiving reports of head and facial injuries that resulted after the strap broke.Not surprisingly, the chin strap was made in China. The strap was sold between 2006 and 2007.You can see pictures of the strap here. For more information on this subject, please refer to...

• Wyeth Smacked by Reno Jury

  Steve Klearman | November 09, 2007 1:18 PM | 0 CommentsReno, NV

  As many Northern Nevadans are aware, a Reno jury recently handed down a major verdict against drug giant, Wyeth.This comes from David Parker writing for the Reno Gazette Journal:Wyeth plaintiffs Arlene Rowart, from left, of Incline Village, Jeraldine Scofield of Fallon and Pamela Forrester of Yerington listen shortly after the jury ruled in their favor in the trial against the pharmaceutical...

• Merck Agrees to $4.85 Billion Settlement

  Steve Klearman | November 09, 2007 1:13 PM | 0 CommentsReno, NV

  Merck agreed to pay more than $4 billion to settle the majority of the claims that have arisen from their popular drug Vioxx. Victims and their families claim that Vioxx causes heart attacks and strokes.Merck has won most of the Vioxx cases that have gone to trial and many observers actually believed that this was a favorable settlement for Merck.Approximately 38,000 or the 60,000 Vioxx...

• Businesses Fighting Fewer Suits

  Steve Klearman | November 07, 2007 1:08 PM | 0 CommentsReno, NV

  The following comes from the American Associaiton of Justice quoting Sheri Qualters at the National Law Journal:American businesses are filing and fighting fewer lawsuits, according to Fulbright & Jaworski's fourth annual Litigation Trends Survey. Seventeen percent of respondents have not defended a lawsuit in the past year, compared with 11% in the prior year. The rate of corporations bringing...

• Why Binding Arbitration Can Forfeit Your Rights

  Steve Klearman | November 06, 2007 12:56 PM | 0 CommentsReno, NV

  Yesterday I blogged on some of the negative aspects of binding arbitration. Here's more information on why this often misunderstood form of alternative dispute resolution can be problematic.Buried in the fine print of most consumer contracts - such as credit cards, insurance plans and car deals - is a clause, which waives the buyer's constitutional right to trial by jury. These contracts...

• Binding Arbitration Bad for Consumers

  Steve Klearman | November 05, 2007 12:52 PM | 0 CommentsReno, NV

  There have been recent efforts by federal legislators to impose binding arbitration in a variety of contexts.You may have never heard of Binding Mandatory Arbitration, but that would not prevent this unfair practice, visited on unsuspecting consumers, from destroying your life. Buried in the fine print of many consumer contracts for credit cards, new homes and cars are clauses that stack the...

• Pension Fund Sues Mattel

  Steve Klearman | October 31, 2007 12:50 PM | 0 CommentsReno, NV

  This from the American Association of Justice quoting the New York Times: "A local pension fund in Michigan filed a shareholder suit yesterday against Mattel and its board, asserting that a mishandling of product safety procedures was responsible for three toy recalls during the summer. The suit claims that Mattel's directors, including the chief executive, Robert A. Eckert, breached their duty...

• U.S. Companies Fighting Fewer Lawsuits

  Steve Klearman | October 30, 2007 12:45 PM | 0 CommentsReno, NV

  More news that suggests that we are less litigious rather than more. This from the American Association of Justice quoting the New York Times:"U.S. companies are getting hit with fewer new lawsuits and initiating less litigation, according to a survey released on Monday. The poll of in-house law departments suggests corporate litigation may have slowed, although big companies still find...