Practice Area Product Liability

Rumberger, Kirk & Caldwell is widely known in the area of products liability defense.   Named by several of the nation's leading automakers as their primary legal defense counsel in the southeast, the firm's partners and associates have also championed products cases ranging from construction and agricultural equipment to motor vehicles, watercraft, electronics, explosives, pharmaceuticals, and toxic substances.  RKC attorneys have worked on some of the most challenging cases in this field, and our experience and litigation skills have earned the firm a well-recognized record of success.

Below is a representative list of the products RKC attorneys have defended:

Airplanes and Aviation ComponentsAsbestos containing products
Automobiles
Beer bottles
Boats
Carpets (allegedly impregnated with noxious substances)
Chlorine cylinders and valves
Cleaners
Concrete mixes for road construction projects
Corrugated steel flooring for refrigerated storage units
Cosmetics
Electronics  
Elevators
Explosives
Forklifts
Front-end loaders
Fluorescent and halide light fixtures
Garage-type overhead doors
Liquid CO 2 delivery systems
Lathes
Latex gloves
Lawnmowers
Morphine injection systems
Neon signs
Pesticides
Pharmaceuticals
Pollution control "scrubbers" for incinerators
Radial arm saws
Roller coasters/other amusement park rides
Scuba breathing valves
Scuba breathing valvesicals
Shotguns
Steel handles for grain delivery mechanisms 
Stump cutters/grinders
Swimming pool pump/filtration systems
Tennis Shoes
Termiticides
Tires
Trucks
 

A Leader in Defending Automotive Product Liability Cases

Many regard Rumberger, Kirk & Caldwell as one of the leading law firms in the defense of automotive product liability cases. For over a quarter century, Rumberger, Kirk & Caldwell has defended automotive manufacturers and component suppliers in general commercial litigation, as well as in lawsuits involving severe or fatal injuries caused by automobile accidents. Automotive product liability cases require complex, specialized technical investigations and forensic testing, as well as the ability to manage extensive document and deposition discovery. Rumberger, Kirk & Caldwell attorneys have vast experience in these matters, having tried many lawsuits to a defense verdict or, where appropriate, a successfully negotiated resolution.

The twenty-first century has brought exciting changes to the automotive industry and the nature of automotive product liability cases. "Black boxes" now record information about the deployment of airbags and other information about the vehicle as it goes through an accident, which greatly aids in the analysis of accident dynamics.  Rumberger, Kirk & Caldwell attorneys pride themselves on keeping abreast of such technical developments and on using their experience gained through decades of litigation, to efficiently and effectively defend clients in catastrophic exposure cases.

Boating, Marine, Personal Watercraft

Since the mid-1980s, the firm's work in admiralty litigation has solidified and gained recognition among manufacturers, operators, and individuals in the field. Recognizing that maritime practice is more than simply "the law of the land" gone to sea, Rumberger, Kirk & Caldwell has successfully represented a wide array of clients in matters involving products liability, personal injury and wrongful death, cargo loss, and the Jones Act. The firm counts among its clients a number of the world's largest insurers and several major manufacturers of watercraft.