Brais Law Firm is a well-respected products liability law firm known for legal prowess. An experienced defective marine product attorney can help you when negotiating a settlement or trying a case before a jury. We dig deep to discover the truth in order to build a strong case for our clients. We often rely on experts in the specific industries at issue to accumulate scientifically backed evidence. These qualities have earned our attorneys such honors as membership in the Multi-Million Dollars Advocates Forum and inclusion on the Super Lawyers, Legal Elite, and Rising Star lists. Review details of our more than $43 million in damage awards since 2012*.
Under Florida’s no-fault rules, your insurance company is responsible for paying the medical costs associated with your car crash. However, the upper level of your policy may not be enough to fully cover your losses. Our law firm thoroughly researches your automobile crash to determine whether you have a cause of action against the automaker for producing a vehicle with defective seatbelts, airbags, tires, seat backs, or other parts.
Keeping your family safe is of paramount importance, so when your child or other family member is injured by a product in your household, you deserve answers. Our attorneys get those answers for you and hold the negligent companies responsible for damages caused by consumer and household products and child and baby products.
Modern advances in medicine should improve your health. Unfortunately, dangerous medical products proliferate the market and put your health at grave risk. An experienced defective marine product attorney can help you recover in your medical malpractice and medical product defect cases. Our team of attorneys has in-depth knowledge about the medical terms and procedures associated with complex cases involving medical implants and dietary products, supplements, and drugs.
Each state has different workers’ compensation laws from which you can recover. Under Florida workers’ compensation laws, you are prohibited from suing your employer in most circumstances in exchange for immediate workers’ compensation benefits. However, you may have a cause of action against a third-party manufacturer of defective construction equipment and scaffolding, and workplace tools and implements.
The concept of product liability comprises several independent theories. Claims may be brought under a single theory or multiple theories of liability, including
You may have a cause of action against one or several parties involved in the design, manufacturing, and marketing of the product that injured you. Most products liability claims fall under one of these theories:
Call Brais Law Firm today for a free case assessment toll-free at 888-238-5637, or contact us online now. Under our contingency plan, you do not owe us lawyers’ fees until we recover damages. Contact a defective marine product attorney to handle your case. We represent clients nationwide.
A breach of warranty claim examines the obligation pursuant to a sales contract. Having graduated as a marine engineer from a merchant marine academy, acquired three U.S. Coast Guard engineer licenses, and previously represented yacht/boat manufacturers and repair facilities for 19 years, board-certified maritime attorney Keith Brais with the law firm of Brais Law Firm is in a unique position to assist in breach of express warranty claims involving defective or unsafe marine products. The lawyers at the law firm of Brais Law Firm with offices in Miami, Florida, and Boston, Massachusetts are here to help.
To pursue a breach of express warranty claim proof of negligence is not required. The eligible plaintiff is the buyer pursuant to an expressed or implied contract. Third parties who are deemed beneficiaries of a buyer’s contract can also be eligible plaintiffs. Beneficiaries can include the buyer’s family, household members, guests, employees, servants, and agents when it is reasonable to expect those persons to use, consume, or be affected by the product.
Breach of warranty is now governed by the Florida Uniform Commercial Code, which both addresses breach of expressed and implied warranty, the latter being divided into merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose claims. A breach of express warranty exists if a seller makes an affirmation of fact or a promise relating to the goods or provides a description or sample of the goods. The affirmation, promise, description, or sample must be part of the basis of the bargain between the parties. Words like “warranty” or “guarantee” are not required, nor is a specific intention to warrant the goods. From a practical standpoint, an express warranty exists when the seller informs the buyer of facts previously unknown to the buyer but subsequently relied upon by the buyer as part of the basis of the bargain. Defenses include:
Under Federal law, a person making a written warranty is liable for the consumer’s attorney fees in any lawsuit whereby the consumer proves that the express warranty was breached. Further, under Florida law, a manufacturer and/or seller is liable for the repair or replacement of the warranted item as well as any damage arising from the failure of that item.
Negligence and strict liability are remedies that provide only tort damages, i.e., losses that are the result of the wrongdoer’s negligence or the defective part, respectively. These damages include personal injury, wrongful death, diminished value of the property, cost of repair or restoration, the value of fixtures, personal property, and loss of use in certain circumstances. Damages to the defective or dangerous product itself must be recovered under a breach of contract theory, the reasoning being that contracts provide for only “the benefit of the bargain”, i.e., the cost of the product or part itself. Put differently, a contract-based claim only allows for the recovery of the 89-dollar part and not the 1.2-million-dollar yacht into which the part was installed. This prohibition against the recovery of tort damages is generally known as the “economic loss rule.” Breach of warranty mixes the theories and allows for the recovery of both contract and tort damages depending upon the circumstances. If the breach of the sales contract causes physical harm or damage to property other than the product itself, tort damages are available. If the breach of warranty results in damage to the product itself, contract damages are available.
An action for negligence of a defective or unsafe marine product is predicated upon the existence of a legal duty owed by the defendant to protect the plaintiff from an unreasonable risk of harm. Having graduated as a marine engineer from a merchant marine academy acquired three U.S. Coast Guard engineer licenses, and previously represented yacht/boat manufacturers and repair facilities for 19 years, board-certified maritime attorney Keith Brais with the law firm of Brais Law Firm is in a unique position to assist persons who suffer a personal injury, death or property damage due to an accident or failure of a defect or unsafe marine product.
The lawyers at the law firm of Brais Law Firm with offices in Miami, Florida, and Boston, Massachusetts are here to help. While the law regarding the scope of the duty owed has changed over the years, the rule that finally emerged is that a party is liable for negligence in the manufacture or sale of any product that may reasonably be expected to be capable of inflicting substantial harm if defective. Thus, the adoption of the “zone of danger” rule did away with any vestige of privity needed between the injured person and the manufacturer or seller of the dangerous product.
Eligible defendants include manufacturers but also sellers or retailers with knowledge. The attorneys at the law firm of Brais Law Firm have the experience to protect your rights, the compassion to serve your needs, and the skill to obtain the compensation you deserve.
To reach our lawyers, you may click email the firm, call 800-499-0551 from within the U.S., Skype BraisLaw worldwide, or click Contact Us to select and complete a form for a free evaluation of your case.
A strict liability plaintiff is a consumer, user, or foreseeable bystander who has been harmed by a defective product. Having graduated as a marine engineer from a merchant marine academy acquired three U.S. Coast Guard engineer licenses and previously represented yacht/boat manufacturers and repair facilities for 19 years, board-certified maritime attorney Keith Brais with the law firm of Brais Law Firm is in a unique position to assist consumers who suffer a personal injury, death or property damage as a result of an accident involving a defective or unsafe marine product. The lawyers at the law firm of Brais Law Firm with offices in Miami, Florida, and Boston, Massachusetts are here to help.
In 1976, the Florida Supreme Court joined the national trend and issued its landmark decision of West v. Caterpillar Tractor Co., supra, formally adopting the doctrine of strict liability as promulgated by the Restatement (SECOND) OF TORTS §402A (ALI 1965):
Pursuit of a strict liability claim does not require the plaintiff to be in privity, i.e., the direct purchaser of the product. Traditional negligence concepts of notice of the defect and opportunity to cure is irrelevant. Strict liability applies to cases where the seller is engaged in the business of selling goods and the product reaches the buyer/user without substantial change. It applies only to the sales contract, not to contracts for repair and other services. Defenses to a strict liability claim include:
Strict liability also includes design defects that may be defended against by one or more of the following:
Strict liability also includes marketing defects, i.e., the failure to warn, the failure to instruct, and even the failure to test or inspect for latent defects.
Your case will be handled by an experienced personal injury attorney who knows what it takes to get the results you deserve. The practitioners at our firm have over 70 years of collective trial experience. Our credentials and qualifications are extensive, including an “AV” Preeminent rating by Martindale-Hubbell and membership in the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum. More importantly, we have a first-hand understanding of how insurance carriers operate because we represented clients insured with major insurance companies for nearly 20 years before we made a choice to change sides so that we could help the people who need us most – individuals just like you.
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