|
|
|
|
Ashcraft & Gerel
LLP
|
|
|
|
RECALL OF TOYS FOUND TO CONTAIN LEAD PAINT
[Introduction: If you or someone you know has children who have been exposed to toys containing lead paint and have had a simple blood test showing positive for lead paint poisoning, please contact us to find out more about your or their legal rights. Although our lead paint lawyers are located in Maryland (MD), Virginia (VA) and Washington, D.C. (DC), our mass tort and defective product litigation is national in scope, and our lead paint lawyers are prepared to file lawsuits and litigate lead paint poisoning cases around the country. Therefore, regardless of what state you are from, please fill out our help inquiry form on this web site or email us so that Ashcraft & Gerel, LLP can have a lead paint lawyer contact you to discuss your claim and the potential of a lawsuit.]
Beginning in May of 2007 there have been several large and very public manufacturer recalls of toys made in China, because these toys were painted with lead based paint. Mattel Inc. announced in August that it is recalling 9.75 million toys in the United States because of lead paint on some toys and other toys with detachable magnets that could cause intestinal perforation or blockage in children who swallow these magnets. These include the Fisher-Price and Sarge toy line popular with preschoolers. This has come on the heels of another large recall of Thomas & Friends or Thomas the Tank Engine Toys that were found to contain excessive lead based paint. RC2 Corp. has recalled 1.5 million of these popular toys due to lead paint.
A list of the recalled toys can be found at the following links:
http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/category/toy.html
http://www.mattel.com/safety
Additional resources can be found at the following link:
http://www.nchh.org/html/whats_new.htm
Childhood lead poisoning is one of the greatest environmental health threats facing American families today. Lead is a soft metal found naturally in the Earth's crust. At one time it was freely used in many products, including paint, batteries, solder, pottery and gasoline. This metal is virtually indestructible, and it is not biodegradable.
Why would a toymaker ever use lead paint on a toy? Because it is bright, durable, flexible, fast-drying and cheap. China has been mass producing lead paint, and coloring agents like lead chromate are generally less expensive than organic pigments. In 1978, the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) made it illegal to use any paint containing more than 0.06 percent lead for residential structures, hospitals or children's products. There are currently no such restrictions in China.
Lead poisoning can affect virtually every system in the human body and often occurs with no distinctive or outward signs or symptoms. Doctors and scientists have determined that lead can be especially harmful to young children and fetuses. Lead is very dangerous at all stages of a child's development, because during the developmental period the human brain is much more susceptible to injury from chemicals and poisons.
Lead at very high levels can cause brain swelling, convulsions, coma and even death. At low levels, lead poisoning has been associated with loss of IQ points and intellect, learning disabilities, academic failure, attention problems (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or ADHD and attention deficit disorder or ADD), hyperactive behavior, school failure, and antisocial or criminal behavior.
Q: How do I know if my child is sick from lead poisoning?
A: Childhood lead poisoning is known as a silent danger. This is because unless the child's lead level is extremely high there are little to no outward signs or symptoms. Some children with chronic lead exposure display trouble sleeping, loss of appetite or hyperactivity. Unfortunately, these signs can be hard to distinguish from a typical or healthy child's regular pattern of behavior. Experts suggest that the quickest and best way to learn whether a child has lead is by taking your child to his or her doctor or pediatrician, and asking for a simple blood test. An initial test can even be done merely by a finger prick without a needle into the child's vein. However, if that test comes back positive, a venous or vein blood drawing is known to be a more accurate test.
Lawsuits are often brought by lawyers on behalf of children who have sustained lead poisoning from lead paint. The lawsuit filed by the lawyer seeks an award, settlement, verdict, judgment or some other form of recovery for money damages. A parent or other adult responsible for the child may retain a lawyer to represent the child in filing a law suit to recover for the child's injuries and also to recover for the medical and rehabilitative expenses incurred by the parent. The lawyer representing the victim who files the lawsuit alleges that the defendant failed to follow safety and testing standards in the production of toys or other products. Because children exposed to lead paint may suffer mild to moderate brain damage, it is the responsibility of the attorney representing these children who files the lawsuit to see that they are compensated by those responsible for the poisoning. Many jurisdictions have a very long statute of limitations for lawsuits filed by children. This means that even if a child sustained lead poisoning five (5), ten (10) or even twenty (20) years ago, the attorney representing him or her may still be able to bring a claim and file a law suit. The law in may states allows attorneys representing children to file lead paint lawsuits for harms they have suffered even past the time they are legally considered adults. It is vitally important that the attorney representing the child with possible lead paint poisoning who plans to file a lead paint lawsuit have experience handling these claims so as to recognize all of the defenses and pitfalls that are raised by defendants in fighting these cases. The lawyer handling one, two or just a few of these cases may well feel overwhelmed, and may wish to associate with an experienced lawyer in pursuing the case. Within the legal field, lawyers experienced in handling lead paint litigation are a select group, and often they are willing to travel to various locations around the country to assist in the handling of individual lead paint cases.
The attorneys at Ashcraft & Gerel have broad experience litigating lead paint claims and have been instrumental in causing the payment of millions of dollars in awards, settlements, judgments, verdicts and other lawsuit recoveries. Our attorneys have handled lead paint claims where the child was only recently exposed to lead paint, and our attorneys have successfully handled cases where the lead poisoning happened as long ago as twenty years. While Ashcraft & Gerel's lawyers are physically located in our offices in Maryland (MD), Virginia (VA) and the District of Columbia (DC), we are willing to become involved in some lead paint claims throughout the United States. If you would like to speak to a lead paint attorney, please do not hesitate to telephone us on our toll free line at 1-800-400-1949. Please ask for the head of our lead paint litigation department, Alan Mensh, in our Baltimore, Maryland office. Alternatively, please feel free to email us or complete the form on our help page.
[ Return to Homepage ] [ Help ] [ Learn About Ashcraft & Gerel ] [ See Our Offices and Attorneys ] [ Email Us ] [ Links ] [Resources] [AG Friends & Associates] [ Contingent Fees in Personal Injury Litigation ] [ Workers' Compensation ] [Maryland Workers' Compensation] [District of Columbia Workers' Compensation] [Virginia Workers' Compensation] [ Product Liability Law ] [ Cerebral Palsy ] [ Medical Malpractice ] [ Automobile Accident Litigation ] [Maryland, Virginia and D.C. Injuries and Accidents] [ Birth Injury Litigation ] [ Social Security Disability ] [ Fen Phen Litigation ] [ Asbestos Litigation ] [ Toxic Tort Litigation ] [ Breast Implant Litigation ] [ Whistle Blower Litigation ] [ Construction Litigation ] [ Railroad Worker (FELA) Litigation ] [ Propulsid Litigation ] [ PPA Litigation ] [ Nursing Home Malpractice ] [ Sulzer Defective Hip Implants ] [ Defense Base Act Claims ] [ Baycol Claims ] [ Other Hip Implant Claims ] [ Thimerosal Mercury Poisoning Autism Claims ] [ Olympus Bronchoscope Claims ] [ Serzone Liver Damage Claims ] [Ephedra Claims] [Crestor Claims] [ Meridia Claims ] [ Lead Paint Claims ] [ Vioxx Claims ] [Celebrex Claims] [Bextra Claims] [Ortho Evra Claims]
