A power tool that shatters or a medical device that fails can cause life-altering injuries in an instant. When a dangerous or defective product hurts someone in Palm Beach County, Florida law lets that person hold the company behind the product responsible. Elstein Legal helps injured people across West Palm Beach bring those claims. Brian Elstein handles every case himself, on a contingency basis, so you owe nothing unless he recovers for you.
Defective-product cases are also some of the hardest injury claims to win, because manufacturers and their insurers defend them aggressively and the science can be technical. Knowing how the other side thinks is a real advantage, and it is the advantage this firm was built on.
Why Choose Elstein Legal for a West Palm Beach Product Liability Claim
Before Brian Elstein represented injured people, he worked the other side. As a former insurance-defense attorney, he spent years defending and valuing injury claims for the carriers that stand behind manufacturers and retailers. He knows how those insurers investigate a defect claim and what makes them raise an offer instead of digging in. Most plaintiff firms cannot claim that background. You can read more about Brian Elstein’s insurance defense background and how it shapes the way he builds a case.
That experience is the reason clients hire the firm, but it is not the only one:
- One lawyer, start to finish. Brian handles your product liability case personally. It is not passed down to an associate or a paralegal.
- No fees unless he wins. The firm works on contingency, so there is no upfront cost and you owe nothing unless there is a recovery.
- Available around the clock. You can reach the firm 24/7, including nights and weekends.
- A record of real results. Brian has recovered millions in verdicts and settlements for injured clients across South Florida.
What Counts as a Product Liability Claim in Florida
Product liability is the area of law that holds a company responsible when something it put on the market injures a user. You do not have to prove the company meant to hurt anyone. Under Florida’s strict-liability rule, you have to show the product was defective and unreasonably dangerous, and that the defect caused your injury. That is a different and often more direct path than proving ordinary carelessness. It also keeps the focus on the product and how it behaved, rather than on second-guessing your own conduct at the moment you were hurt.
Florida recognizes three separate defect theories, and a strong case often pleads more than one.
| Type of defect | What it means | Everyday example |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing defect | The design was sound, but something went wrong in production, so the item that hurt you differs from the one that was intended. | A batch of tires built with a weak bond that separates at highway speed. |
| Design defect | The whole product line is dangerous as designed, even when built exactly to spec, and a safer workable design was available. | A space heater with no tip-over shutoff that ignites when it falls. |
| Failure to warn (marketing defect) | The product carried no adequate warning or instructions about a danger that was not obvious. | A medication sold without a label about a known and serious drug interaction. |
Who you can pursue depends on where the defect entered the chain of distribution. Potential defendants include:
- the manufacturer of the finished product;
- the company that made a defective component part;
- the distributor or wholesaler that moved it; and
- the retailer that sold it to you.
Brian traces that chain so the right defendants, and the right insurance policies behind them, end up named in the claim.
Product cases are not limited to exotic machinery. Everyday items cause serious harm too: an e-bike battery that overheats, a ladder that collapses, a car seat that fails in a crash, or a prescription drug sold without warning of a known risk. What ties them together is a product that turned out to be more dangerous than a reasonable user would expect.
Florida Product Liability Law, Stated Correctly
A lot of Florida injury pages now list a two-year filing deadline. For most negligence claims that is correct, because a 2023 tort-reform law cut the general deadline from four years to two. Product liability is the exception that many sites get wrong. Here is how the law actually reads for a defective-product claim.
The filing deadline is four years, not two. A product liability claim in Florida runs under the general four-year statute of limitations, Fla. Stat. § 95.11(3). The shorter two-year deadline that now applies to ordinary negligence does not control it. Do not assume your claim is dead because a website quoted the two-year figure, and do not assume you have unlimited time either.
A twelve-year outer limit also applies. Florida’s statute of repose, Fla. Stat. § 95.031, can bar a claim once a product has been delivered for more than twelve years, even when the injury is recent. Because the deadlines turn on specific dates and facts, the safest step is to have your timeline reviewed early.
Shared fault does not end your case. Under Florida’s modified comparative-fault rule, Fla. Stat. § 768.81, you can still recover as long as you are not found more than 50 percent at fault. If you are partly to blame, your recovery is reduced by your share rather than wiped out.
No-fault PIP does not govern here. The 14-day PIP rule is a car-crash insurance requirement. It does not apply to a defective-product claim unless a motor vehicle was directly involved, so anyone citing the PIP deadline for your product case is mixing up two different areas of law.
Getting this right matters. A missed deadline can end an otherwise strong case before it starts, and the accuracy problem cuts both ways when so many sites publish the wrong number. Brian will confirm exactly which deadline fits your situation.
Who Pays, and What a Product Case Is Worth
Once liability is clear, the fight is usually about money, and this is where Brian’s background pays off for clients. Manufacturers and their insurers defend product cases hard, because the exposure can be large and because a finding of defect can affect an entire product line. Having spent years on that side of the table, Brian knows the playbook the defense will run and how adjusters put a number on a claim.
Proving a defect almost always takes expert help. An engineer may reconstruct how a part failed, or a physician may connect a device to the harm it caused. Brian brings in the right experts early and builds the file around what they can actually support, because a demand that outruns the evidence is easy for a defense lawyer to pick apart.
A common defense move is to blame the person who was hurt. Insurers argue the product was misused or modified after it left the factory, hoping to push fault past the 50 percent line and cut off recovery. Having watched that tactic from the inside for years, Brian documents normal use and preserves the product early, which shuts those arguments down before they gain traction.
What a claim is worth depends on the specific harm. Recoverable damages in a product case can include:
- medical bills already incurred and the cost of future care;
- lost wages and any reduced ability to earn going forward;
- the pain and the way a lasting injury changes daily life.
Florida now measures past medical damages by the amount actually paid or payable rather than the full billed amount (Fla. Stat. § 768.0427), which is one more reason to have someone who understands how insurers value these figures. The point is to frame the claim around what the evidence will hold up, not to inflate it.
What to Expect When You Bring a Claim
You do not need to have everything figured out before you call. That said, a product case moves faster and cleaner when a few things happen early.
- Keep the product. Do not throw it away, return it, or let anyone repair it. The item itself is often the most important piece of evidence. Save the packaging, the manual, and your receipt if you still have them.
- Get medical care and keep records. Your health comes first, and the records also document what the product did to you.
- Write down what happened. Note how you were using the product and what went wrong while the memory is fresh.
- Call before you talk to the company or its insurer. Manufacturers often reach out quickly, and what you say early can be used against you later. Let Brian handle that contact.
- Let Brian investigate. He pins down every potential defendant and brings in the engineering or medical experts needed to prove the defect.
- Resolution. Most cases settle once the evidence is solid. If a fair number is not on the table, Brian is prepared to file suit in the 15th Judicial Circuit and try the case.
Timelines vary. A claim backed by a clear defect and a cooperative manufacturer can resolve in months, while a contested design case against a large company can take longer and may require a lawsuit. Brian will give you a realistic read on where your case likely falls after he reviews the facts, rather than a promise he cannot keep.
Product Injuries in Palm Beach County
Palm Beach County residents face the same defective goods as anyone else, along with a few tied to life here. Boating and marine gear and pool or spa equipment injure people near the water, while outdoor power machinery and the medical devices used across a large retiree population account for many other claims. When one of these products causes a serious injury, the case is filed in the 15th Judicial Circuit, whose main courthouse sits at 205 N Dixie Highway in West Palm Beach.
Defective products also cause some of the most severe injuries the firm sees. A faulty battery or fuel system can leave someone with catastrophic burns, so many product cases overlap with that work. When a defect proves fatal, the family’s claim shifts to Florida’s Wrongful Death Act, and a wrongful death claim can be brought on their behalf. Product liability is one part of the firm’s broader West Palm Beach injury practice.
Acting early protects the case in a practical way, too. Products get discarded, companies quietly revise designs, and witnesses forget. A solo firm gives your matter direct attention, so Brian can move on evidence without the layers a larger practice adds.
Results and What Clients Say
Brian has recovered millions in verdicts and settlements for injured people across South Florida. A few representative results:
- $7,900,000 in a wrongful-death case;
- $2,000,000 in a medical-malpractice claim;
- $1,150,000 in a fall case outside a restaurant.
These outcomes turned on their own facts, and every case is different. Past results do not guarantee, warrant, or predict future outcomes.
Clients rate the firm 5 out of 5 across more than 120 Google reviews. One of them, Chloe Fretwell, put it this way:
Brian is absolutely the best! He was by my side every step of the way, and made me feel so comfortable. I highly recommend him, and hope that he can be your attorney!
Chloe Fretwell, Google review
Talk to a West Palm Beach Product Liability Lawyer
If a defective product hurt you or someone in your family, the sooner the claim is reviewed, the more options you have. Brian Elstein will look at what happened, tell you honestly whether you have a case, and explain the deadline that applies to it. There is no charge for the consultation and no fee unless he recovers for you.
Call (305) 299-2835 any time of day or night, or start with a free case evaluation online. Brian handles every case himself, from the first call to the final check.