Overview of Medication Liability
Pharmaceutical companies have a legal obligation to ensure that the medications they manufacture and sell are safe for consumer use. When a medication causes harm due to defects in its design, manufacturing, or labeling, the manufacturer and other parties in the distribution chain can be held liable under product liability law.
Medication liability claims arise when patients suffer injuries from drugs that were:
- Defectively designed, making them inherently dangerous regardless of proper use
- Contaminated or improperly manufactured during production
- Marketed without adequate warnings about known risks and side effects
- Promoted for uses not supported by clinical evidence
Florida's product liability laws provide strong protections for consumers who are harmed by defective medications, allowing victims to recover compensation even in cases where the drug received FDA approval.
Medical Product Defect Claims
In addition to medications, defective medical products and devices cause thousands of injuries each year. From hip implants and pacemakers to surgical instruments and diagnostic equipment, medical products must meet strict safety standards before they can be used on patients.
Common defective medical products include:
- Joint replacement devices: Hip and knee implants that fail prematurely, cause metallosis, or require revision surgery
- Surgical mesh: Hernia and pelvic mesh implants that erode, migrate, or cause chronic pain
- Cardiac devices: Pacemakers, defibrillators, and heart valves with design or manufacturing defects
- Infusion pumps: Devices that deliver incorrect medication dosages
- Diagnostic equipment: Faulty imaging or testing devices that lead to misdiagnosis
Manufacturer Responsibility
Under Florida law, manufacturers of medications and medical products bear significant responsibility for ensuring their products are safe. This responsibility extends throughout the product's lifecycle, from initial design and testing through manufacturing, marketing, and post-market surveillance.
Manufacturers can be held liable when they:
- Fail to conduct adequate pre-market testing and clinical trials
- Ignore or suppress evidence of safety problems
- Provide inadequate instructions for use or warnings about risks
- Continue selling a product after learning of defects
- Fail to report adverse events to the FDA as required by law
In many cases, distributors, retailers, and healthcare providers who supply defective products may also share liability for injuries that result.
How We Investigate These Cases
Medication and medical product liability cases require meticulous investigation and strong expert support. At Roselli & McNelis, our attorneys work with pharmacologists, medical device engineers, physicians, and other specialists to thoroughly analyze each case.
Our investigation process includes reviewing FDA records and adverse event reports, analyzing the product's design and manufacturing processes, consulting with medical experts about the injuries sustained, and examining the manufacturer's internal documents for evidence of concealed risks.
If you or a family member has been injured by a defective medication or medical product, contact Roselli & McNelis today. Our trial attorneys offer free consultations and handle all product liability cases on a contingency fee basis.