King County Product Liability Attorney
A defective product injury case is rarely a fight with the person who sold you the item; it is a fight with a manufacturer’s insurer, its engineers, and a defense team that will argue the product was fine and you used it wrong. Injury Law Group NW represents people hurt by dangerous and defective products across King County, the Eastside, Seattle, and the greater Puget Sound region, and the firm’s attorneys approach these cases as former insurance defense lawyers who sat on the other side of the table.
Anyone searching for a King County product liability attorney is usually dealing with one of a few situations: a power tool that kicked back, a vehicle part that failed at highway speed, a child’s product that proved unsafe, a medication or device that caused harm its label never warned about. Each of these cases turns on the same question, which is whether the product left the manufacturer’s hands in a condition that made it unreasonably dangerous. Answering that takes engineering analysis, preserved physical evidence, and a lawyer who understands how a manufacturer’s legal team will respond.
Why Choose Injury Law Group NW for a Product Liability Claim
Injury Law Group NW is a personal injury firm serving King County, Issaquah, Bellevue, Seattle, Sammamish, Redmond, Kirkland, Kent, Renton, and communities throughout Washington. The firm’s attorneys spent decades defending insurance companies and their corporate clients before representing injured people, and that background is directly useful in product cases, where the opposing party is almost always a company with an insurer and defense counsel already assigned. Clients get free, confidential consultations, and the firm works on a contingency fee basis, so no attorney fee is owed unless there is a recovery.
Troy Hunter, the founding partner, spent 16 years in insurance defense litigation, mostly as a partner at Floyd, Pflueger & Ringer, defending insurers and their corporate clients against personal injury, wrongful death, fire loss, and construction defect claims. Fire loss and construction defect work involves exactly the kind of causation disputes that arise when a product fails. Troy also serves as a dispute mediator. David D. Mordekhov spent two decades at Gardner Trabolsi & Mordekhov, a Seattle defense firm, trying wrongful death, catastrophic injury, and product liability cases before judges and juries across Washington. David has been selected to the Super Lawyers list and teaches trial and deposition skills as faculty at the National Institute for Trial Advocacy, which matters when a case depends on questioning a manufacturer’s engineer under oath. Both Troy and David are rated AV Preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell. Warren Barreiro and Hannah Shergold are associate attorneys on the team, and Warren speaks Spanish while David is fluent in Russian.
The firm prepares every claim as though it will go to trial, and its attorneys have argued at every level of the Washington court system, from district court to the Washington Supreme Court. Results include a recovery of more than $1 million for parents whose newborn died after a hospital failed to adequately test for Group B Strep, a case that also led the hospital to change its procedures. Clients describe attorneys who are responsive, honest, and clear about what is happening in their case, and the team includes case managers who return calls and texts promptly. The firm is a member of the Washington State Association for Justice.
Common Product Liability Situations in King County
- Defective Vehicle Parts and Components: Tires, brakes, airbags, seat belts, and steering components that fail can turn an ordinary drive on I-90, I-405, or SR-520 into a catastrophic crash. These cases often run alongside a standard collision claim, and the vehicle itself becomes the most important piece of evidence.
- Power Tools and Industrial Equipment: Missing guards, faulty switches, and inadequate warnings cause amputations, crush injuries, and burns on King County construction sites and in shops and warehouses. A worker hurt this way may have a workers’ compensation claim and a separate claim against the manufacturer.
- Children’s Products: Cribs, car seats, strollers, high chairs, and toys with small parts or flammable materials can injure the people least able to protect themselves. These claims frequently involve recalls, which can be powerful evidence of a known danger.
- Medical Devices and Pharmaceuticals: Implants, surgical tools, and prescription drugs can harm patients when a design is flawed or risks were not disclosed. These cases are medically and scientifically heavy and typically require qualified experts before anyone can say what went wrong.
- Household Appliances and Consumer Electronics: Overheating lithium-ion batteries, space heaters, e-bikes, scooters, and kitchen appliances can start fires and cause burns inside a home. Fire cases need prompt scene and product preservation because the evidence is often damaged by the event itself.
- Construction and Building Materials: Defective ladders, scaffolding components, fall protection gear, and building products can injure workers and occupants. A separate Washington time limit applies to claims tied to construction of an improvement on real property, discussed below.
- Motorcycle and Bicycle Equipment: Helmets, brakes, frames, and tires that fail on Eastside and Seattle roads can cause head injuries and fractures. A traumatic brain injury from a helmet that did not perform as marketed raises both product and long-term damages questions.
- Food and Consumer Goods Contamination: Contaminated, mislabeled, or foreign-object-containing products can cause serious illness or injury. Identifying the point in the supply chain where the problem began is the central task.
What to Do After a Defective Product Injury
Get medical care first, and tell the treating provider exactly how the injury happened, including that a product was involved. Records created at the time of treatment carry weight later, and gaps in care give an insurer something to argue about. Hospitals and clinics throughout King County, from Seattle trauma centers to Eastside emergency departments, document injuries in ways that become part of the proof, so be specific about what you were doing and what the product did.
The single most important thing you can do for the claim is to keep the product. Do not repair it, return it to the store for a refund, throw it away, or let anyone take it apart. Store it in a safe place with the packaging, manuals, receipts, and any warning labels. If the product was damaged in a fire or crash, leave it in its post-incident condition, and photograph the scene, your injuries, and the product from several angles. If the product is a vehicle or installed equipment that cannot be moved, tell the owner or insurer in writing not to alter or dispose of it. A manufacturer’s defense frequently depends on arguing that the product was altered, misused, or poorly maintained, and an intact, untouched product is the best answer to that argument.
Be careful about what you say to the manufacturer, the retailer, and their insurers. Companies and adjusters commonly ask for recorded statements early, and those statements are used to suggest misuse or to shift blame. Washington applies comparative fault, which means that if you are found partly responsible your damages are reduced in proportion but you are not barred from recovering. The statutory definition of fault includes misuse of a product, so expect the defense to explore how you handled the item. Speaking with a lawyer before giving any statement is the safer course, and the firm’s attorneys know how these statements are used because they once used them.
Timing matters in two ways. Most Washington personal injury actions must be commenced within three years, and wrongful death claims generally follow the same three-year period counted from the date of death. For product claims specifically, the product liability statute bars a claim brought more than three years after you discovered, or with due diligence should have discovered, the harm and its cause, subject to tolling rules. Separately, the same statute creates a presumption that harm occurring more than twelve years after a product was delivered happened after its useful safe life expired. That presumption can be rebutted by a preponderance of the evidence, but it makes older products harder cases and is one reason to act sooner. If the injury arises from a defect in a building improvement, a six-year limit measured from substantial completion applies to construction-related claims. And if a government agency owns or operates the product or equipment, a formal claim must be presented first and a 60-day waiting period must pass before suit, with the limitations period tolled during that time.
Filing in court is usually in the King County Superior Court, a general jurisdiction court that sits at the King County Courthouse in Seattle and at the Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent. Where a case is heard generally depends on where the parties live and where the injury occurred. District court handles smaller claims up to its jurisdictional ceiling, but product injury cases involving serious harm usually belong in Superior Court. Cases involving out-of-state manufacturers or parties from different states can sometimes be heard in federal court in Seattle, which is the Western District of Washington.
How a Product Liability Case Unfolds
These cases move in stages that are more technical than a typical crash claim. The first stage is investigation: gathering medical records, preserving the product, identifying every company in the chain of distribution, and retaining engineers or other qualified experts to examine the item. Washington law allows claims against manufacturers and product sellers, and the theories commonly include a design that was unreasonably dangerous, a manufacturing flaw that made one unit differ from its intended design, and inadequate warnings or instructions. Which theory fits determines which experts are needed and what the defense will argue.
Once a lawsuit is filed, the case enters discovery, where the real leverage is built. Attorneys request design files, testing data, complaint histories, internal communications, and records of prior similar incidents, and they question company witnesses under oath. Prior incidents and recalls can show that a manufacturer knew of a danger, which strengthens both liability and negotiating position. Defendants typically respond by blaming the user, blaming a third party, or arguing the product was altered or past its useful safe life, so the case often becomes a contest of expert opinions about what physically caused the failure.
Many cases resolve in mediation or settlement negotiations after discovery sharpens the picture, because both sides can then assess the risk of a verdict. Insurers tend to pay more fairly when they believe the lawyer across the table will actually try the case, which is why the firm builds every claim for trial from the start. Damages in a serious product case can include past and future medical care, lost wages and lost earning capacity, and pain and suffering, and in a wrongful death the personal representative may pursue damages on behalf of the spouse or domestic partner, children, and in some situations parents or siblings. Because defendants in product cases are often large companies with substantial counsel, timelines are commonly longer than a routine auto claim, and clients should expect a process measured in many months or more than a year rather than weeks.
Frequently Asked Questions About King County Product Liability Claims
Who can be held responsible when a product injures me?
Responsibility can extend through the chain of distribution: the manufacturer, the maker of a defective component, a wholesaler or distributor, and the retailer that sold the item. Which of them is liable depends on the facts and on the legal theory involved. Identifying every responsible party matters because it determines how much insurance coverage may be available.
What do I have to prove in a defective product case?
Generally you must show that the product was defective or unreasonably dangerous because of its design, manufacture, or inadequate warnings, that the defect existed when it left the manufacturer or seller, and that the defect caused your injuries. Expert analysis of the product is usually central to proving these points.
How long do I have to file a product liability lawsuit in Washington?
Product claims generally cannot be brought more than three years after you discovered, or reasonably should have discovered, the harm and its cause, subject to tolling rules. Most personal injury actions are also subject to a three-year limit under the general statute. Because different deadlines can apply depending on the product and the defendant, speak with a lawyer early.
Does it matter how old the product was?
Yes. If the harm occurred more than twelve years after the product was delivered, a presumption arises that its useful safe life had expired, and a seller can use that to defend the claim. The presumption can be rebutted with evidence, so an older product does not automatically end a case, but it makes the claim harder.
What if I was partly at fault for the injury?
Washington follows comparative fault, so your recovery is reduced by your percentage of responsibility but you are not shut out. Fault under Washington law includes misuse of a product, which defendants often raise. A lawyer can evaluate whether the blame the defense assigns to you is supported by the evidence.
Should I keep the defective product even if it is broken or burned?
Yes, and do not repair, clean, or discard it. The product itself is the most important evidence, and its post-incident condition tells experts how it failed. Store it with packaging, manuals, and receipts, and avoid letting the manufacturer or an insurer take it before your lawyer has had a chance to arrange proper inspection.
The manufacturer is based out of state or overseas. Can I still bring a claim?
Often yes, though these cases are more complex. A retailer or distributor in the chain who sold the product in Washington may be a proper defendant, and in some situations the case can be heard in federal court in Seattle. Tolling rules can also apply when a defendant is outside the state, but you should not rely on them without legal advice.
Can I bring a product claim if I was hurt at work?
Workers’ compensation covers many workplace injuries, but it does not bar a separate claim against a third party, such as the manufacturer of a defective machine or tool. These third-party claims can provide compensation beyond what workers’ compensation pays. The firm handles construction and workplace-related third-party claims.
Can a family bring a claim if a defective product caused a death?
Yes. A wrongful death action is brought by the personal representative for the benefit of the spouse or domestic partner and children, and if there are none, for the parents or siblings. The three-year period generally runs from the date of death. Parents also have a separate right to pursue claims related to a child’s injury or death.
Will my health insurance or PIP cover treatment while my claim is pending?
Health insurance can cover treatment while a product claim proceeds, and auto insurance PIP coverage may apply if a vehicle was involved. Your health plan may seek reimbursement from a settlement, so coordinating these sources is part of how the firm helps clients keep medical bills under control during the case.
Is it worth hiring a lawyer for a product injury that seems minor?
It is worth a consultation, because the early period is when the product must be preserved and the facts documented. Some injuries that seem minor at first turn out to be serious, such as a concussion or a burn that scars. The consultation is free and confidential, and the firm is paid only if there is a recovery.
Serving Product Liability Clients Across King County
The firm represents injured people throughout King County, from Seattle and the neighborhoods surrounding it to the Eastside communities of Bellevue, Kirkland, Redmond, Sammamish, and Issaquah. Our team also serves clients in Kent and Renton to the south, and in surrounding communities across the greater Seattle area and the broader Puget Sound region. Product injuries do not follow city lines; a defective part can fail on I-5 near downtown Seattle, a faulty tool can hurt a worker on an Eastside job site, and a dangerous appliance can start a fire in a home anywhere in the county. If your injuries make travel difficult, we will meet you at your home or at the hospital at a time that works for you, and attorneys and staff can assist clients in Russian and Spanish.
Speak With a King County Product Liability Lawyer Today
If a defective or dangerous product has hurt you or someone in your family, talking to a King County product liability lawyer early can protect the evidence that your case depends on. Injury Law Group NW offers free, confidential consultations, and you pay no attorney fee unless we recover money for you. Call or text the firm to schedule a consultation with an attorney who spent years on the defense side and now works for injured people. We will listen to what happened, explain your options, and help you move forward. We give hope. We get results.
