Columbus, Ohio Attorney Blog - Robert W. Kerpsack Co., L.P.A.

In 2005, a fan motor made in China ignited a fire in a family home, trapping a 7-year-old boy inside the house. The boy died of smoke inhalation and burns. The manufacturer of the fan, Lasko Products, Inc., had known of the defect responsible for the fire since 1999, and in 2004 it had even developed a correction. There had been several previous incidents involving the fans and this defect, including a fire in 2000 that killed a 12-year-old boy. The company settled a product liability lawsuit over this death for a confidential amount, and the company did not warn people who had purchased the fan of the defect or report the defect to the Consumer Product Safety Commission until 2006, at which point the company also initiated a recall. This week, a jury awarded the family a total of over $13.5 million, including $4 million to the mother and $2 million to the sister for emotional distress.

Lawsuits of this type are important to discourage companies from this type of behavior. A recall is an expensive prospect for a company which may have to recall millions of units (in this case 5.6 million), so companies may be reluctant to start the process. Unfortunately, regulatory agencies cannot or do not enforce regulations sufficiently to be a threat to companies. In this case, for example, failure to report the defect only cost Lasko $500,000. However, if companies are threatened with multi-million-dollar lawsuits for every potential death, they may act more quickly and save more lives. Unfortunately, in Ohio non-economic damages are limited to $350,000, which can limit the punitive aspect of lawsuits, but does not eliminate them.

If you have been injured by a defective consumer product, filing a lawsuit is about more than compensation for your injury or punishing the wrongdoing of corporations, it is about protecting others who may be in danger of similar injuries. To learn more about a product liability lawsuit in Ohio, please call or email Columbus personal injury law firm Robert W. Kerpsack Co, L.P.A. today for a free consultation.

If you have been hurt in an accident, whether a car accident, a slip-and-fall accident, or an accident caused by a dangerous product, you should work with a practice focused on personal injury law. Although lawyers are not certified specialists in the same way that doctors are, it does not mean that all lawyers are equal in handling certain types of cases.

In hiring an attorney for your accident, you are seeking justice for a wrong that has been done to you. Whether the wrong is the result of negligence or deliberate misconduct, you deserve compensation, and you should work with a lawyer that can increase your chances of receiving it. All lawyers are trained in the basics of law and know the framework of major types of law, but a lawyer that has devoted his efforts to a particular kind of law comes to know many things that can be helpful in your case.

First, a lawyer focused on personal injury law knows more detail relevant to your case. A lawyer that has handled a case similar to yours in the past has seen what can work and what won't, and may be more able to draw on an obscure point of law when it becomes necessary. This will increase your chances of a successful lawsuit. Second, a lawyer who has been practicing in a particular area knows the courts and judges that handle your type of case. This can be particularly important in Ohio, where judges have the discretion to reduce jury settlements. Finally, if a lawyer knows more about the law from the beginning, he will be able to pursue the case with less time spent researching or otherwise investigating background. This means the fees are likely to be less, which means you will take home more of your award.

For all these reasons, it pays to work with a lawyer focused on personal injury law. In Columbus, Ohio, Robert W. Kerpsack, L.P.A. is dedicated to representing the rights of the injured. Please contact us today to learn more about the firm and schedule a free consultation.

In September 2007, a 49-year old police officer began pursuing a speeding motorist when his Ford Crown Victoria began hydroplaning out of control. It spun around and the rear of the vehicle struck a pole. As several passersby were trying to help him out of the car, it burst into flames. The police officer burned to death. The deadly car accident prompted the police department in Euclid to install fire suppression equipment in the rest of their Crown Victoria patrol cars. This incident came almost exactly a year after two Ohio Highway Patrol officers and a woman following in a pickup truck were burned in a crash involving a police Crown Victoria in southern Ohio.

Now the 2007 victim's widow has filed a lawsuit alleging the fire was due in part to the defective and dangerous design of the Crown Victoria. In this car, the fuel tank is located so far in the rear of the vehicle that it is prone to puncture during even low-speed crashes. Dozens of police officers have been burned alive in fires in these vehicles. According to an advocacy group, the fuel tank is located within the vehicle's crumple zone, which is designed to crush during collisions, ostensible to protect passengers from jarring injury, but if the fuel tank punctures, fires become very likely. In addition to the fire suppression system, Crown Victorias have been retrofitted with fuel tank shields, but these have so far not stopped the dangerous fires. Ford has stopped selling the Crown Victoria to the general public, but millions remain in service.

If you have been injured or lost a loved one due to a car accident partly caused by a defective vehicle, the hazardous product lawyers at Columbus, Ohio law firm of Robert W. Kerpsack, L.P.A. can help. Please contact us today for a free initial consultation.

Everyone seems to be going green. From home improvement to tiny cars, every industry is affected by the proposed initiatives by the government to clean up the environment. But how safe are the new "smart cars" that we have suddenly seen an influx of on our streets and highways? Would their drivers survive a car accident?

According to testing performed by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, the Smart "Fortwo" received the highest safety rating for front-end and side collisions available in its size class. The Institute specified, however, that a larger, heavier car could protect you just as well, even if it were given a lower crash rating.

We had earlier blogged about crash tests comparing Smart and other microcars to small sedans, but another possible risk is the very compact crumple zones that Smart cars utilize. Although the Smart Car has a strong steel cage surrounding the passenger compartment, during severe crashes, the crumple zones might fold into the passenger area, leading to limb injuries. So far, the Smart car seems like a safe vehicle, but its actual safety in road conditions will only be fully known as more and more of them are on the road.

If you have been seriously injured in a moving vehicle accident, please contact experienced car crash attorney Robert W. Kerpsack, Co., L.P.A., located in Columbus, Ohio and learn how you can regain control of your life.

Some estimates place cellular phone use while driving at fault in as much as 6 percent of all car accidents. In 2004 an estimated three percent of drivers were on their cell phones at any given time. In 2007, that number rose to ten percent. Numerous studies have shown, though, that people talking on the phone while driving are four times more likely to cause an accident than drivers not on the phone. They are about as likely to cause an accident as a drunk driver.

Many states have laws that drivers are prohibited from operating cell phones while they drive, a law with ramifications so obvious that it may seem on par with requiring the use of seatbelts. However, not all states have adopted this stance, and the number of motor vehicle accidents caused by cell phones rises every year. With the use of cell phones, drivers are also texting more frequently while they drive. Even semi truck drivers have been cited as talking on cell phones while they drive, causing truck accidents.

If a driver talking on a cell phone or texting has made you the victim of a car accident, either through injury or death, please contact Robert W. Kerpsack, Co., L.P.A., in Columbus, Ohio today, and let us help you recover from the recklessness of others.

On August 18, 2009, an Ohio teenager was riding his bicycle down a hill when he lost control and swerved into the street. As he was speeding down the hill, the teen hit an oncoming SUV, flying over the hood and crashing into the windshield.

After the bicycle accident, the teenager was flown to a nearby Ohio hospital to treat critical injuries to his head. Bicycle accidents that occur when the rider is not wearing a helmet can cause fatal brain injuries when the rider hits the ground or another object.

In this case, it appears that the teenager who swerved into the road caused the bicycle accident, but an investigation may prove otherwise. While this bicycle accident might have been caused by the bike rider, many other bicycle accidents occur every day when inattentive drivers collide with unsuspecting bike riders.

If a car has hit you or someone in your family during a bike ride, you may be able to recover compensation for the injuries that were sustained during the bicycle accident. Please contact Robert W. Kerpsack, Columbus, Ohio personal injury lawyer to schedule your case evaluation.