Consumer
Protection

No matter where we live or what language we speak, we are all consumers.  We use consumer products when bathing, dressing, cooking, traveling, cleaning, working, even playing.  Sometimes the things we eat, medicines we take, or gadgets we use that should be designed to help us, actually hurt us.  This can result from flawed design or improper manufacturing.  And blame may be found with the designer, manufacturer, supplier, and/or retailer.  Protection of consumer rights extends beyond products to services too. For example, if your planned airline flight is significantly delayed, you may be entitled to compensation.

The attorneys of the Global Justice Network believe that those injured by a defective product or service, regardless of residence or origin or economic means, deserve representation by skilled and knowledgeable experts who are dedicated to holding responsible parties to account.

Often help comes in the form of money to help with treatment or recovery.  Sometimes money is paid to help to compensate for a loss or a death.  And even though we all know that suffering and loss of a loved one cannot be truly compensated with money, it is important to hold accountable those responsible so that we can deter such actors from putting future consumers at risk.

We understand that the laws that apply to every country, state, or region are different and that an attorney located where an injury takes place is often best able to evaluate an injury and the circumstances in light of the local law.  But “two heads are better than one”.  We know this from our own years of experience working together.  Our attorneys located in different parts of the world work together – and together we work out a plan to protect or advance a client’s rights that is unique to each individual injured consumer.

We always work for the injured person, not for the manufacturer of a product. Global Justice Network attorneys act for claimants or consumers all over the world, protecting people’s right to justice when problems arise from any type of product. Some of the types of cases that our attorneys have been involved in include:

• Medical equipment (such as breast implants, hip and knee replacement joints, pacemakers)
• Medicine or pharmaceutical products (for example, blood products, Vioxx®, tobacco). Sometimes a large number of people suffer the same or a similar injury when using product, such as a drug. These cases are sometimes grouped and filed together, on behalf of the group of injured persons. These cases are sometimes referred to as ‘mass tort litigation’ (see our separate section regarding mass tort claims).
• Defective automobiles, often resulting in accidents. Sometimes traffic accidents occur when a person is traveling outside of his home country. These cases are sometimes referred to as ‘cross-border litigation’ because the legal issues cross national borders.
• Defective airplane parts, sometimes causing tragic airplane crashes (see our separate section regarding transportation accidents).
• Products used at work, for example asbestos used in insulation or construction, sometimes cause injury or death (see our section on protection of workers’ rights).