Insurance Litigation and Product Liability Defense

Practice Area

Insurance Litigation

Our insurance litigation and product liability defense attorneys have earned a national reputation for skillfully defending major insurance carriers as well as numerous Fortune 500 companies mired in high-exposure, high-value liability cases. Harris Beach attorneys have achieved reasonable settlements or summary judgments in potentially high verdict cases while maintaining a low profile for our clients. Our attorneys regularly act on a regional and national level for numerous insurance carriers in general liability, property liability, class action litigation and toxic tort, environmental, asbestos, and building construction liability cases.

Harris Beach defends contractors, manufacturers, property owners and managers, directly or through their insurers in litigation. We carry a strong record of success in liability and personal injury cases and defend cases involving construction accidents, equipment accidents, slip and fall injuries, security issues, labor law matters and a host of other premises liability matters, including mold, lead, and asbestos exposure and other air quality issues.

Our firm brings a cost-effective approach to managing large insurance defense matters. We collect briefs and memoranda of law on a broad range of subjects and  issues and maintain a research bank that is indexed for quick access. As a result of having one of the largest and most sophisticated health services practices in New York state, we have access to the leading medical experts in a full range of medical specialties. We maintain information on expert witnesses, which is categorized in our database for future retrieval. Resumes, transcripts, and other information that may be useful in retaining an expert witness or for use in cross-examination are also kept in our database.

Product Liability Defense

In addition to defending top-notch quality products that have unfortunately become the subject of a lawsuit, we defend products that have been recalled, products banned by the FDA, products that have been the subject of negative publicity, and products that require technical expertise (e.g., biomechanics, crashworthiness, etc).

When it is in the best interests of the defense in defending complaints against products, our attorneys rely on manufacturers and sellers – those who know the product best – to provide the most effective testimony. It is a legal strategy that has a proven success rate over decades of practice and hundreds of successfully defended insurance and product liability claims.

Harris Beach product liability defense attorneys have successfully defending difficult and often highly-charged liability cases on behalf of some of the world’s leading consumer and industrial product manufacturers. Defending broadly diverse products ranging from contact lenses and exercise equipment, to commercial pesticides and cement mixers, we have achieved defense verdicts, dismissals, voluntary discontinuances, summary judgments or reasonable settlements in potentially high verdict product liability cases while maintaining a low profile for our clients.

We defend products that have been recalled, products banned by the FDA, products that have been the subject of negative publicity, and products that require technical expertise such as biomechanics and automotive crash-worthiness.

Our services include:

Pre-Product Launch Risk Analysis and Management

The best possible time to analyze and manage any risk that may be associated with your product is before it hits the market. Our attorneys take a proactive approach by reviewing your product communications such as brochures, labels, and packaging, prior to launch to help assess and head off potential liability risks. This in-depth analysis often includes review of electronically stored information (ESI) sources. We have extensive pre-launch risk analysis and management experience consulting manufacturers across a wide variety of industries on the types of risks they may face.

Regulatory Advice

Whatever your industry, your products face a growing and ever-changing number of complex governmental regulations. Harris Beach has over fifty attorneys with governmental and/or regulatory experience, ready and able to help you successfully navigate the diverse rules of state and federal regulatory bodies. If regulatory issues arise and the possibility of a government inquiry develops, our Government Compliance & Investigations team can assist your organization in all phases of government compliance, interaction, and crisis management.

Assistance with Recalls and Retrofits

Harris Beach attorneys have negotiated with government agencies on product recalls and other corrective actions and worked closely with clients to successfully conduct product retrofits and recalls. This process frequently includes e-discovery and ESI review to identify problematic documents and emails which could potentially be damaging to the companies we are defending. In these situations, we have found that early intervention by our Crisis Communications & Management team is crucial to managing public opinion and the threat of mass tort litigation which may follow a recall.

Litigation and Trial Experience

Harris Beach attorneys have broad experience defending domestic and foreign corporations in all stages of complex product liability litigation. Our litigation experience includes national, regional, local, discovery, and trial counsel levels of engagement. We take a no-time-wasted approach to identifying, preparing, and defending corporate witnesses for deposition and trial.

In crafting discovery responses, we locate, review, and ultimately supervise large document productions in large high-risk and high-verdict cases. We fully immerse ourselves in our clients’ businesses by visiting their manufacturing sites to acquire hands-on experience with facsimile products, meet with key witnesses, and discover documents instrumental in developing defense strategy. Additionally, we try to identify cases for early resolution whether by cost-effective settlement or potential summary judgment.

Crisis Management

Product liability cases can expose an organization to significant public and media attention with potentially damaging consequences to their image. Our Crisis Communications & Management team will work closely with you to understand your position and craft an effective communications and media strategy to counter negative sentiment. Our team has experience in addressing negative publicity of all types and can help you quickly and fully as possible resolve issues by taking the necessary steps to protect your company’s brand and integrity.

Work with Expert Witnesses
Harris Beach attorneys routinely work with experts in accident reconstruction, biomechanics,
mechanical engineering, warnings, and human factors. We also work with economists, industrial hygienists, toxicologists, epidemiologists, and other expert witnesses. We collect and maintain our work product in an electronic data research bank enabling us to efficiently store and quickly access information regarding a wide variety of expert witnesses which we may call upon in your defense.

Defense of Catastrophic Cases
We excel in the defense of products and companies involved in sophisticated, high exposure, high value catastrophic injury cases involving head and brain injury, paralysis, paraplegia, amputation, neurological deficits, significant orthopedic trauma and systemic diseases.Harris Beach attorneys draw on their knowledge of medical, technical and scientific disciplines including toxicology, epidemiology, oncology, pathology, occupational health, industrial hygiene, accident reconstruction, roadway design, vocational rehabilitation, economics, life care planning, and forensics. We have extensive experience and a proven record of success defending companies involved in high risk, high stakes cases; we use the most qualified experts in the region in each specialty, obtain all relevant medical studies and investigate all viable alternative causation defenses.

PRODUCT LIABILITY EXPERIENCE:

Harris Beach has extensive experience in a wide range of product liability categories, in both the industrial and consumer arenas. Our product liability experience includes, but is not limited to:

INDUSTRIAL AND COMMERCIAL ARENA:

Industrial Chemicals and Products

We represent manufacturers of commercial pesticides and foggers, chemical solvents, asbestos
containing products, tiles, gases, metals, acids, laboratory equipment and packaging, radiators, valves, and boilers.

Heavy Industrial Equipment

Our attorneys have represented numerous manufacturers, distributors and retailers of a diverse range of industrial and construction-related products. These include trucks, forklifts, cranes, aerial lift platforms, subway car propulsion systems, fueling components, industrial kitchen machinery, food processing equipment, industrial presses, cement mixers, electrical fixtures, elevators, pumps, and turbines. Additionally, Harris Beach represents North America’s largest heavy equipment rental company, defending claims concerning diverse rental equipment including portable light towers, boom lifts, and scissor lifts.

CONSUMER GOODS PRODUCT ARENA:

Consumer Vehicles, Exercise and Recreational Equipment

We represent manufacturers and distributors of motor vehicles including automobiles, ATVs, motorcycles, boats, as well as recreational equipment such as bicycles, basketball hoops, and exercise equipment. We have substantial experience in the auto segment including auto product liability matters involving seat belts, airbags, engine cooling fans, and crash-worthiness.

Consumer Products

We represent numerous consumer products companies, including many among the Fortune 500. We have defended claims involving hair dyes, contact lenses and lens solutions, cosmetics, small appliances such as hair dryers, toaster ovens and irons, and infant car seats, as well as prescription and OTC drugs, medical devices and equipment, vaccines and injectables. We also represent the manufacturers and distributors of dog foods, latex gloves, personal insect repellant sprays, liquid drain cleaners, aerosol ant and roach sprays, beverage containers, and other consumer products that may involve chemical sensitivity or toxic exposure.