Our friends at the American Association for Justice (AAJ) recently released a report entitled "They Knew and Failed To," which gives numerous examples of defective products that remained in the market and caused serious personal injuries and even death to consumers. The report states that in all these cases, the product manufacturers knew that their products were dangerous and defective, but did nothing about it because they were more worried about their profits than the people who put their trust in those products and believed that they were safe.

Defective Products Injure and Kill Consumers

One of the defective products mentioned in AAJ's report is a Second Chance bullet proof vest that caused police officer Tony Zeppetella's death when he was shot in 2003. Second Chance apparently knew as early as 1998 that heat and sunlight caused the vest's material to degrade, making them penetrable. In fact, in 2001 -- two years before Zeppetella's death -- internal memos from a top executive at the company recommends notifying consumers about the defective product adding: "Lives and our credibility are at stake." Second Chance finally issued a product defect recall in September 2003, three months after Zeppetella's death. It was too little too late.

The California personal injury lawyers of BISNAR | CHASE have pursued and continue to pursue manufacturers of defective autos and other defective products on behalf of our injured clients. We consider it an honor and a duty to fight for the rights of consumers who were injured or killed by a dangerous product that a company put on the market knowing that it was hazardous.

Our Civil Justice System Works

Most businesses in the United States act in good faith to serve their customers. However, there are some who operate recklessly, irresponsibly and unethically and our civil justice system is designed as a forum for dispute resolution. By having a fair and open justice system, corporations who "knew and failed to act" are punished by having to compensate those people who were injured by their defective products. Our civil justice system, in a backhanded way, encourages corporate responsibility. Without a robust civil justice system, manufacturers have little or no incentive to make their products safer or recall those products that they know could cause serious injuries or death. To read AAJ's report, please visit their Web site.