The product liability group at Bullivant Houser Bailey PC has developed extensive experience in this unique area through decades of working closely with local, national and international manufacturers, sellers and suppliers on the defense of product liability lawsuits. We combine our substantial courtroom experience and technical skills to help product manufacturers minimize risk and partner with our clients to avoid future claims. Manufacturers, sellers and suppliers call on our team of attorneys to represent their interests because of our knowledgeable and experienced grasp of one of the most technically complex areas of litigation.

Our product liability experience includes:

• Consumer products
• Children's products (including child car seats, toys and recreational equipment)
• Firearms (shotguns, rifles and handguns)
• Food-borne illness and outbreak (contamination claims, matters arising from outbreaks)
• Heavy equipment (log loaders, tractors, trailers, excavators, industrial rock crushing, sanitation equipment, scaffolding)
• Light machines and equipment (saws, meat grinders, lawn mowers, wheelchair lifts, gas fireplaces and furnaces, construction and painting equipment)
• Medical devices (orthopedic bone screws, implantable pumps, breast implants, heart valves)
• Pharmaceuticals (including over-the-counter supplements)
• Surgical equipment
• Toxic exposures (tobacco, chronic toxic encephalopathy/"painters syndrome," brain damage, isocyanate-induced reactive airways syndrome, multiple chemical sensitivities disorders, chronic fatigue syndrome, asbestosis, silicosis, and accidental releases of bromine, pyridine, and fertilizers)
• State and Federal regulatory compliance including consumer product safety commission proceedings and defense of claims under California Prop 65 statutes
• Vehicles and vehicular equipment (automobiles and components, tires, diesel engines, seat belts)

Product liability issues are constantly changing and the number of lawsuits in this area is on the rise. In an effort to maintain the highest levels of expertise and awareness, members of Bullivant's product liability group frequently give presentations and author articles on important product issues. Our attorneys wrote the Oregon chapter of the Defense Research Institute Compendium of Product Liability Defenses. Bullivant team members are active in several product liability industry groups, including: Product Liability Advisory Council; American Bar Association's Product Liability Committee and Toxic, Hazardous Substance and Environmental Law Committee; Oregon State Bar Association's Toxic Tort Section; Defense Research Institute Drug and Medical Device Committee; and the International Association of Defense Counsel Product Liability and Toxic and Hazardous Substances Litigation Committee.

The American Lawyer selected Bullivant as a leading Pacific Northwest firm for product liability defense based on the feedback of 400 corporate counsel on the firm's ability to provide quality, service, and value.

In working with your attorney on issues regarding product liability, some of the questions you should consider include:

• How well do you track product complaints?
• Do you review product development and testing history in light of current information?
• Do you maintain historical records or use a consistent and lawful record retention and destruction policy?
• Do you review your legal requirements for pre- and post-sales warnings?
• Are you aware of the law in your jurisdiction for self-critical analysis?