Find Lawyers in West Palm Beach, Florida for Product Liability Litigation - Plaintiffs
Practice Area Overview
Products liability, therefore, often involves complex litigation. The nature of a products liability claim is dependent on the jurisdiction or state where the injured person lives, the type of product, and the variety and cause of the defect. Product defects can surface in different facets of the user experience including defects in design, manufacturing, or even when a manufacturer fails to warn of associated dangers in the product’s use. Moreover, liability in these cases can rest on many different parties ascending the supply chain up to the original manufacturer - from the manufacturer and distributor to the supplier and retailer. After gathering all of this information, a knowledgeable attorney will determine the appropriate type of claim that should be pursued including strict liability, negligence, breach of warranty, or even fraud.
Strict Liability: Rather than focus on the behavior of the manufacturer (as in negligence), strict liability claims focus on the product itself. Under strict liability, the manufacturer is liable for harm caused by the defective product, even if the manufacturer was not negligent in making that product defective.
Negligence: This case type most resembles an ordinary negligence lawsuit. In addition to duty, defect, causation, and injury, the injured party needs to prove that the manufacturer or seller breached its duty to the person harmed.
Breach of Warranty: When the maker of a product warrants its characteristics, if it fails in one of those characteristics and the failure causes an injury, a breach of warranty claim arises. Warranties can be express (written or sometimes verbal) or implied by law.
THEODORE (TED) BABBITT is a former managing partner at Babbitt & Johnson, P.A. who for the past five decades has represented individuals in personal injury, wrongful death, and commercial cases. In 1970, he obtained the first verdict in Palm Beach County for a plaintiff in a medical malpractice case; in 1975, he obtained the first jury verdict in Palm Beach County in excess of one million dollars. When Mr. Babbitt was 17 years old he joined the U.S. Marine Corps and still managed to be sw...
Rosalyn “Sia" Baker-Barnes is a Shareholder at Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley, P.A., and the Chairperson of the firm’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee. In her over 20-year career, she has successfully pursued justice for victims in personal injury, medical negligence and product liability cases and frequently lectures throughout the United States on catastrophic injury cases. She has achieved numerous multi-million dollar verdicts and settlements, includi...
BRIAN R. DENNEY is a Shareholder at Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley, P.A. in West Palm Beach, Florida, where he currently serves on the firm’s Executive Committee. He has earned Florida Bar Board Certification in Civil Trial Law, the highest level of recognition for the competency and experience of a civil trial lawyer. Mr. Denney routinely works with individuals and families throughout Florida whose lives have been devastated due to the negligence of others. He takes pride...
MARIANO GARCIA is a Florida Board Certified Civil Trial Lawyer who has been practicing in West Palm Beach since 1994, representing people in personal injury and commercial litigation matters in state and federal courts. He has achieved an AV rating for the highest level of professional ability and ethics from Martindale Hubbell. He is a member of the Million Dollar and Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum and the American Board of Trial Advocates and has been selected to Florida Super Lawyers...
JACK P. HILL played football at Yale University, earned all-Ivy and all-American academic honors, and served as a felony prosecutor in the Palm Beach County State Attorney’s office before joining Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley, P.A. A native of Palm Beach County who attended the Benjamin School in North Palm Beach, Mr. Hill handled dozens of jury trials as an Assistant State Attorney, prosecuting crimes ranging from DUI to first degree felonies punishable by life in prison...
Lance C. Ivey is recognized as a top civil litigation attorney in the area of products liability. His practice includes cases involving automotive design and manufacturing defects including insufficient roof strength, handling and stability defects, defective airbags and defective seat belts. Lance has handled defective product cases all over the country and has obtained numerous multi-million dollar verdicts and settlements for firm clients in cases against virtually every international auto...
JOSEPH JOHNSON is a Florida Board Certified Civil Trial Lawyer with extensive experience litigating difficult and complex cases. Over the last 38 years, he has represented victims and their families in a wide range of personal injury cases, including medical malpractice, products liability, consumer protection, defective medical devices and automobile and trucking accidents. Mr. Johnson is a third generation lawyer who has been recognized as a Florida Super Lawyer since 2006. He has been sele...
Attorney Chris Larmoyeux is a partner with the personal injury law firm of Larmoyeux & Bone, P.L. Prior to forming Larmoyeux & Bone, Mr. Larmoyeux was a partner with the firm of Montgomery & Larmoyeux. Before that, he was a partner with the firm of Montgomery, Searcy & Denney from 1985 to 1989, and a partner with Montgomery, Lytal, Reiter, Denney & Searcy, P.A., in West Palm Beach, Florida from 1983 – 1985, where he began his legal career in 1979. Mr. Larmoyeux gradu...
ANDREA A. LEWIS is an experienced trial lawyer who has dedicated her life to fighting for victims who have been injured, abused, or killed by the negligence and wrongdoing of others. She has successfully conducted over 80 jury trials and handled many high-profile cases. Due to her experience, Ms. Lewis has been quoted in numerous national publications and her cases have been covered by media outlets across the country, including USAToday, FoxNews and CNN. Ms. Lewis has a lengthy track record ...
EDWARD V. RICCI was born and raised in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. He is a graduate of The Benjamin School (1997), Georgetown College (2001), and Georgetown University Law Center (2006). Since joining the firm in 2008, Mr. Ricci has successfully tried numerous personal injury and wrongful death cases to verdict and obtained significant settlements on behalf of his clients. He has advocated for his clients in complicated cases involving product defects, medical malpractice, automobile neglige...
MATTHEW K. SCHWENCKE earned his law degree from Stetson University College of Law, where he was a member of Stetson's award-winning moot court board. While in law school, he served as intern to a federal magistrate judge and also prosecuted misdemeanor criminal offenses as a Certified Legal Intern for the Pinellas County State Attorney's office. As an undergraduate, Mr. Schwencke attended the University of Florida on a Bright Futures Scholarship; he graduated with honors. A Palm Beach County ...
CHRISTIAN D. SEARCY is president and CEO of Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley, P.A. and writes and lectures extensively about civil trial practice, personal injury and wrongful death. For 46 years he has litigated cases primarily involving catastrophic injury and death in venues throughout Florida as well as in other states. At age 29, he had the distinction of being the youngest lawyer in the United States to achieve a verdict of $1 million for a single personal injury lawsuit. In...
KAREN E. TERRY is a Shareholder at Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley, P.A. in West Palm Beach and has been with the firm for 25 years. Recently, Ms. Terry became Florida Bar Board Certified in civil trial law as well as in health care and medical malpractice, which are the highest honors one can achieve. For the last 10 years in a row, she has been named as one of The Best Lawyers in America. Recently honored as one of the top-rated lawyers in health care in the United States, Ms. ...
DONALD J. WARD III is a graduate of the University of Virginia and the University of Notre Dame Law School, where he earned his degree cum laude. At age 26, in his first jury trial, Mr. Ward obtained a verdict of $824,200, which was more than thirteen times what the defendant had offered to settle the case. Since joining Searcy Denney, he has recovered in excess of $100 million on behalf of his clients. He currently serves as President of the Palm Beach County Justice Association, a countywid...
CALVIN WARRINER III (Cal) has been with the firm for 32 years and has been a Shareholder since 1991. He joined the firm as a seasoned trial attorney and is Board Certified as a Civil Trial Lawyer by both The Florida Bar and the National Board of Trial Advocacy, as well as being a Diplomate of the American Board of Professional Liability Attorneys. He has been nominated by his peers and received the distinction of being included in the prestigious publication The Best Lawyers in America as wel...
JUAN C. DIAZ AVIL A has devoted his legal career to the litigation of personal injury, premises liability, wrongful death, negligent security and products liability claims, representing his clients in both state and federal courts from inception of the case through trial. As a native Spanish speaker, he is especially well equipped to understand and serve the needs of the Latino community. Before joining Searcy, Denney, Scarola, Barnhart, & Shipley, P.A. Mr. Diaz Avila worked with the larg...
JORDAN A. DULCIE began his legal career in medical malpractice defense at a boutique firm in Palm Beach Gardens, followed by broader civil litigation practice at a larger civil defense firm in Florida. His practice areas include not only medical malpractice, but automotive accidents and nursing home and assisted living cases. In 2019, 2020 and 2021 he was selected by Palm Beach Illustrated magazine as a top lawyer in the area of medical malpractice, and Florida Super Lawyers Magazine lists hi...
ADAM HECHT , a veteran of more than 75 felony and misdemeanor jury trials as an Assistant State Attorney, now works with Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley, P.A. handling medical malpractice, personal injury, wrongful death and products liability cases. Mr. Hecht is licensed to practice law in all jurisdictions in the State of Florida and has been admitted to the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. He has served on the Young Lawyers Board of Directors ...
DAVID P. VITALE JR. is an experienced trial attorney who has litigated cases throughout the state of Florida. Mr. Vitale has been nationally recognized for his achievements by Best Lawyers in America (Ones to Watch) and The National Trial Lawyers (Top 40 Under 40 Civil Plaintiff Attorney – Florida). He has also been recognized by his local peers as a Palm Beach Illustrated Top Lawyer and a Jupiter Magazine Top Lawyer. In addition to pursing personal injury, wrongful death, and medical m...
BORIS ZHADANOVSKIY brings to the Searcy Denney team not only a law degree, but an undergraduate degree in business administration and fluency in both English and Russian. He draws upon his experience in complex insurance litigation to make sure that insurance companies keep their promises to policyholders who have been harmed. A Florida native who grew up in West Palm Beach, Mr. Zhadanovskiy graduated magna cum laude in business administration from Florida State University, where he competed ...
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