Areas of Practice - Products Liability - Deasey, Mahoney & Valentini, Ltd.


		[ Areas of Practice ]

One of the major areas of concentration in the Firm is the defense of products liability litigation. For almost 20 years, the Firm's members have been recognized as experienced products liability litigators capable of representing a wide array of product manufacturers in personal injury and property damage claims. Some of the Firm's more noteworthy accomplishments in this area include:

Baby Bottle Litigation. Effectively defended numerous suits, including class action litigation, against a major manufacturer of infant feeding bottles. Through their aggressive defense efforts, our attorneys involved in these cases persuaded the presiding judge to enter a directed verdict in favor of the manufacturer based upon the plaintiffs' inability to meet their burden of proof. The Firm also obtained a defense verdict in a separate lawsuit which persuaded plaintiffs' counsel in over twenty other lawsuits to voluntarily dismiss those actions.
Industrial Metal Forming Equipment. Enjoyed sustained success in defending a major manufacturer of metal forming equipment in a multitude of suits spanning a 15 year period. The products involved in these lawsuits include mechanical power presses, power squaring sheers, power press brakes, power roll benders, universal grooving machines, as well as other machine tool equipment. The Firm has won defense verdicts in over 50 cases for this manufacturer.
In the case of Wenrick v. Schloemann-Siemag A.G., 523 Pa. 1, 564 A.2d 1244 (1989),which involved an extrusion press, the Firm's attorneys persuaded the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to establish the doctrine that a component part manufacturer is not responsible for a defect in the end product.
Poultry and Meat Processing Equipment. Defended a nationally known manufacturer of poultry processing equipment in lawsuits involving serious hand and arm injuries.
Industrial Pipes and Valves. Successfully represented a major manufacturer of industrial pipes and valves in a number of matters. In a case which involved catastrophic burn injuries and which ultimately settled for an amount in excess of $15 million dollars, attorneys for the Firm won summary judgment on behalf of the valve manufacturer.
Paints and Coatings. Effectively defended a major manufacturer and distributor of paints and coatings in a variety of matters, including products liability and environmental claims, over the last six years. We handled a series of consolidated lawsuits involving seven plaintiffs who claimed to have suffered toxic encephalopathy and/or "multiple chemical sensitivity syndrome" (MCS) as a result of their exposure to a variety of products utilized in a restoration project on a prominent college campus. As a result of its aggressive defense efforts, the Firm succeeded in having its client dismissed from the case without any contribution.
Diet Drug Litigation ("Fen/Phen"). Currently involved in the defense of a diet clinic in the now highly publicized "Fen/Phen" litigation. Additionally, the Firm has been appointed by the federal court to serve as national liaison counsel for all diet center defendants involved in the MultiDistrict Litigation Program now pending in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
One Meridian Plaza Litigation. Successfully defended the manufacturer of the linseed oil that allegedly caused the infamous 1991 fire at the One Meridian Plaza building in Center City Philadelphia. This fire claimed the lives of three firefighters and caused hundreds of millions of dollars in property damage to the building and its contents, as well as the loss of revenues to the building's owners and tenants. The Firm's client in this litigation is the only party to have been dismissed from over 20 lawsuits, which were filed as a result of the fire, without contributing towards the ultimate settlement which totaled in excess of $120 million dollars. Additionally, the Firm was selected by members of the defense group to spearhead the defense of the building owners' $400,000,000.00 property damage claim which ultimately resolved favorably for the defense group.
Food Products. Effectively defended numerous restaurants, taverns, food markets and similar establishments in personal injury actions arising from allegedly defective foods and/or beverages, including foods contaminated with salmonella, shigella, the hepatitis A virus and other bacteria, viruses and organisms, as well as foods containing foreign objects.
Swimming Pools. Successfully represented a major distributor of swimming pools and pool liners in a case which resulted in a plaintiff's verdict of more than $10 million dollars. Although our client in that case (a distributor of pool liners) was held liable to the plaintiff at trial, we successfully obtained indemnification from the liner's manufacturer and recouped the total amount of our client's liability to the plaintiff, plus attorney's fees and costs.
Hair Care Products. The Firm has served as national coordinating counsel for all litigation involving a manufacturer of hair care products. As national coordinating counsel, the Firm was responsible for the administration and successful resolution of various claims in which the claimants alleged burn injuries from the use of hair care products.
Miscellaneous Matters. While by no means providing an exhaustive list of the types of products cases handled by our attorneys, the following sampling shows the wide range of our experience:

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Deasey, Mahoney & Valentini
Philadelphia Office
Suite 3400
1601 Market St.
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Telephone: (215) 587-9400
Facsimile: (215) 587-9456
dmv@dmvlawfirm.com

Deasey, Mahoney & Valentini
New Jersey Office
80 Tanner Street
Haddonfield, NJ 08033-2419
Telephone: (856) 429-6331
Facsimile: (856) 429-6562

Deasey, Mahoney & Valentini
Media Office
103 Chesley Drive
Lafayette Building
Suite 101
Media, PA 19063
Telephone: 610-892-2732
Facsimile: 610-892-2926

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