A toxic tort is a civil wrong arising from exposure to a toxic substance.3 Litigating such a case can be intimidating, because of the complex issues involved. Notwithstanding these highly technical issues, toxic tort cases contain themes that can be clear and understandable. Thus, to be effective, counsel should try to frame the debate in terms of these simple issues, to avoid overwhelming and confusing the jury. Lawyer Allan Kanner offers an analogy. On one hand, toxic tort lawyers are builders, compiling information to construct a case. On the other hand, they are sculptors, chipping away extraneous information that clouds the argument. “The key is to find the perfect balance between information and presentability.”

A crucial issue in litigating a product liability action is whether the jury will hear evidence of other incidents involving the same or a similar product. “[T]he primary reason the evidence is so important is that it has high probative value and trustworthiness attached to it.”1 This article discusses similar acts, happenings, transactions or claims related to the facts involved in a dispute. In a product liability case, this includes other incidents, accidents or injuries caused by the same defect.

State and federal nursing home regulations can be regarded as quintessential guidelines for attorneys involved in nursing home litigation when it comes to establishing the standard of care. The ultimate goal, obviously, is to have regulations relevant to your case admitted into evidence as the accepted standard of care for the jury to apply to the facts. Achieving success in having the regulations admitted into evidence is not a simple task, but the following are some methods that have proved to be successful in the past:

Product liability refers to the legal liability of designers, manufacturers and sellers to compensate buyers, users, and even bystanders, for damages or injuries suffered because of defects in goods purchased. A tort (i.e. a civil wrong) which makes a manufacturer liable if his product has a defective condition that makes it unreasonably dangerous to the user or consumer.

To be successful in any products liability case, the plaintiff must aggressively pursue discovery to prove his case and establish for the jury the manufacturers liability. When you consider that the defendant manufacturer has all the inside information regarding the product and has virtually unlimited resources to prepare a case srgainst you, there can be no question b ~thtsr t discovery is the most critical aspect of the plaintiffs case. The enly way for a plaintiff to level the playing field against the "mega-giant manufacturer" is to obtain critical information establishing the culpability of the manufacturer through the discovery process.