3 Product Liability Tips

Were you injured by a defective product and have questions? Check out these 3 product liability tips, then call our Boise attorneys today.

Qualifying a Product Liability Claim

3 Product Liability TipsHow does an individual know that they have a product liability claim in Idaho? To begin with, a product liability claim refers to any product that fails causing injury to an individual. That definition will hold true whether the case is in Boise, Idaho, or anywhere else in the country. Product liability laws can differ from state to state but that’s the general working definition of a product liability claim. The product failure can be a medical device. It can be a drug. It can be a piece of machinery that doesn’t work properly. The products that give rise to product liability cases can be highly varied but you’ll know that you have a product liability claim if you are injured and the source or the cause of the injury is a product that has failed.

Product Liability Attorney Fees

People often wonder how to pay the lawyer for handling a product liability case. Almost all product liability cases are handled by law firms on a contingent fee. Now, there may well be a few limited exceptions to that statement but those exceptions would likely be limited to individuals who have substantial wealth who for whatever reason decide that they would prefer to pay a lawyer by the hour and pay an hourly fee as the case is being worked on rather than paying a contingent fee. A contingent fee refers to a fee arrangement between attorney and client where the lawyer is paid a percentage of the recovery. The percentage can differ from case to case but almost certainly would be 25% or more. The percentage fee is likely to be not more than 40% of the recovery. Somewhere in the range of 25% to 40% is the range the case could fall in as far as the contingent fee the lawyer would charge.

It’s possible the lawyer would charge a different fee depending on whether the case settled, whether the case went to trial, and whether the case was appealed after the trial. Again, that differs from case to case and law firm to law firm. Generally speaking, contingent fees are used for product liability cases, that way you’re not paying the lawyer as the lawyer does the work. You’re not financial stressed as the case is unfolding. You don’t have to pay the lawyer anything if the lawyer doesn’t make a recovery for you. There are a lot of advantages to contingent fees and you should have a good thorough discussion with the lawyer about all aspects of the contingent fee arrangement when you’re selecting a lawyer. If you have questions about contingent fee arrangements or the use of contingent fee arrangements in product liability cases, you should call Hepworth Holzer law firm and any of us can help you with questions related to that topic.

Product Liability Claim Timeline

How long will it take, from beginning to end, to go through a product liability case? There’s no simple answer to that question. The starting point for the answer to that question is that the assumption is your case would be filed in Idaho. Frankly, not all product liability cases that we handle are from Idaho at our law firm, are filed in Idaho, but let’s assume your case is filed in Idaho. The time from filing a lawsuit to having your day in trial for a case in Idaho, excluding considerations for the COVID-19 virus, will probably be in the neighborhood of not less than 15 months, not more than 24 months. That’s probably a fair range of time from when you first file the lawsuit to when you will be in trial for the case if the case goes to trial. Many cases settle before trial so obviously if the case does not go to trial, the time would be less than the 15 to 24-month estimate that I’ve given.

There can be appeals following trials and that extends the length of time that it could take to resolve the case by at least a year and probably more than a year. There also may be some time spent investigating the product failure that takes place before you file the lawsuit. That can vary from case to case and that could extend the length of time from beginning to end. Generally speaking, from the time of filing the lawsuit to the time of trial in Idaho is anywhere from a minimum of about 15 months to not much more than about 24 months. If you have questions related to product liability cases or any issues you’re dealing with related to considering whether you have a product liability case, please give us a call at Hepworth and Holzer and we’ll help you any way we can.


Were you injured by a defective product in Boise and have questions about these 3 product liability tips? Contact our experienced Boise Product Liability Lawyers at Hepworth Holzer today for a free consultation and case evaluation.

We are committed to helping individuals and families throughout Idaho navigate the world of personal injury litigation as quickly and efficiently as possible. Let us get results for you and your family.

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