Defective consumer product cases — auto recalls, household injuries, recreational equipment, electronics — fall under California strict products liability. Greenman v. Yuba Power controls.
Call (888) 528-8595 for a free consultationDefective consumer products produce a high-frequency category of injury cases in California — auto recalls, household appliances, electronic devices, recreational equipment, children's products, and tools. The legal framework is identical to general product liability under Greenman v. Yuba Power Products, Inc. (1963) 59 Cal.2d 57. The differentiation in this practice is the consumer-product specific expert work, the regulatory overlay (CPSC, NHTSA, FDA depending on product type), and the case-management approach that follows.
On auto recalls, NHTSA-issued recalls become part of the proof in cases where the recalled defect is implicated. The NHTSA recall database documents every recall; we cross-reference VIN and recall history at intake. Recall completion is admissible — a vehicle with an open recall that was implicated in the injury creates a different liability profile than a vehicle whose recall was completed.
On consumer-product recalls, the CPSC recall database documents household and consumer-product recalls. Children's product cases are particularly highly regulated; the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 created stringent testing and certification requirements that became the basis for many subsequent recall and injury cases.
On case categories, recurring patterns include lithium-ion battery fires (e-cigarettes, hoverboards, e-bikes, mobile phones), defective heating equipment (space heaters, electric blankets), defective ladders and recreational equipment, defective car seats and stroller systems, defective kitchen and laundry appliances, and defective electronics with electrical-shock or fire potential.
Burg & Brock has handled catastrophic-injury cases out of the Sherman Oaks headquarters and the regional offices since the firm's founding more than two decades ago. The firm tries cases. Carriers settle differently with firms that have taken comparable cases through trial. Settlement value of an LA County serious-injury case correlates strongly with the demonstrated willingness of plaintiff's counsel to seat a jury.
On infrastructure, the firm has standing relationships with board-certified life-care planners, forensic economists, vocational-rehabilitation experts, biomechanical engineers, accident reconstructionists, and the treating-team physicians at Cedars-Sinai, Ronald Reagan UCLA, Harbor-UCLA, Keck Medical Center of USC, Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center, and Casa Colina Hospital and Centers for Healthcare. The expert-witness package is in place at intake.
On compensation structure, Burg & Brock works personal-injury cases on a contingency-fee basis. There is no upfront cost to the client. The fee is a percentage of the recovery, disclosed in the engagement letter. Case costs — expert fees, deposition transcripts, court-filing fees, life-care planner fees, economist fees — are advanced by the firm and reimbursed from the recovery. The consultation is free; a lawyer is available twenty-four hours a day on the (888) 528-8595 line. Spanish-speaking staff at every office.
Defective consumer product cases run through the same strict products liability framework as general product liability, with consumer-product-specific regulatory overlay.
Greenman v. Yuba Power Products, Inc. (1963) 59 Cal.2d 57. Soule v. General Motors Corp. (1994) 8 Cal.4th 548. Anderson v. Owens-Corning Fiberglas Corp. (1991) 53 Cal.3d 987 — failure to warn.
Howell v. Hamilton Meats & Provisions (2011) 52 Cal.4th 541 — medical-bill admissibility. Pebley v. Santa Clara Organics, LLC (2018) 22 Cal.App.5th 1266 — lien-treatment framework.
Defective-product cases combine product-preservation and CPSC/NHTSA-records discovery with the standard tort workup.
Operational note: many consumer-product cases have class-action or mass-tort potential when the same defect injures multiple consumers. We analyze coordinated-litigation potential at intake.
Defective-product liability extends through the chain of distribution. The standard analysis includes:
Importers and licensors of foreign-manufactured products are increasingly named as defendants when the actual overseas manufacturer is judgment-proof or beyond U.S. jurisdiction.
Economic damages on consumer-product cases follow standard tort framework. Burn injuries from battery fires, falls from defective ladders, electrocutions from defective electrical products — each produces severe-injury patterns reflecting the underlying mechanism.
Non-economic damages cover pain and suffering, disfigurement, loss of enjoyment of life, and loss of consortium.
Punitive damages under Civil Code §3294 in cases where manufacturer-records discovery shows knowing-defect documentation. Suppressed prior-incident reports and delayed recalls are recurring punitive themes in consumer-product cases.
| Case profile | Reported range | Drivers |
|---|---|---|
| Consumer-product defect with moderate injury | $85,000 – $325,000 | Manufacturing or design defect, surgical course or moderate medical course. |
| Battery-fire burn case | $425,000 – $1.6 million | Battery defect, burn-injury course, possible class-action coordination. |
| Defective ladder fall case | $285,000 – $950,000 | Structural failure, fall injuries. |
| Defective children's product case | $185,000 – $1.4 million | Strict CPSC framework, pediatric injury course. |
| Catastrophic consumer-product case | $1.4 million – $8+ million | Severe injury or wrongful-death. |
Past results do not guarantee future outcomes. Each case is evaluated on its own facts and applicable law.
Burg & Brock has tried consumer-product strict-liability cases through manufacturer-records discovery and product-defect expert work. Class-action and mass-tort coordination relationships are in place.
Contingency fee. Free consultation.
LA County Superior Court — Stanley Mosk Courthouse — for cases in LA County. Federal court under diversity for major manufacturer-defendant cases.
Mass-tort cases sometimes proceed in coordinated-litigation Judicial Council Coordination Proceedings or federal MDLs.
No fee unless we recover. Free consultation. Seven California offices, including Sherman Oaks (HQ), Glendale, Beverly Hills, Irvine, Bakersfield, Visalia, and Modesto.
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