Personal Injury Law

Chicago Products Liability: President Obama Says Federal Laws Shouldn?t Preempt State Laws When Determining Civil Cases

Good news for products liability plaintiffs. In a memo issued on May 20, President Barack Obama told federal agencies to stop issuing rules that protect companies from products liability lawsuits in state courts. While he did not point to specific industries, this mandate could impact the outcome of many products liability lawsuits involving numerous consumer goods, including pharmaceuticals, car safety equipment, and food sweeteners.

Obama?s memo reverses the Bush Administration?s approach of guiding federal agencies toward putting forth rules that establish a federal standard that pre-empts state laws. Obama says federal law should only pre-empt state law if a well-defined legal basis exists.

Bush administration officials at a number of agencies, including the Department of Transportation and the Food and Drug Administration had added language to over 50 regulations that barred states from filing products liability lawsuits against certain product manufacturers. One example was the FDA?s revised drug-label ruling in 2006 that tried to bar the majority of state complaints pursuing damages for dangerous or defective drugs. This year, however, the Supreme Court found that federal exemption cannot protect drug makers from products liability lawsuits. In Wyeth v. Levine, the Court ruled in favor of the plaintiff and her right to receive compensation for her catastrophic injuries.

Obama wants agencies to go back over the last 10 years to find any instances when the government enacted federal pre-emption in an improper manner. Government officials say revising regulations with improper preemption clauses could take months.

While many plaintiffs? lawyers are applauding Obama?s memo?the American Association for Justice says the order will let injured consumers hold negligent parties accountable?business groups have not been as enthusiastic.

Illinois Products Liability Lawsuits
Our Chicago, Illinois products liability lawyers are committed to protecting consumers from dangerous or defective products. We know how devastating it can be for you or a loved one to get hurt because a manufacturer, wholesaler, or retailer was negligent.

Obama Limits Preemption, C & EN, June 1, 2009

Shift Toward State Rules on Product Liability, The Wall Street Journal, May 21, 2009

Related Web Resources:
President Obama's Memo (PDF)

Wyeth V. Levine, Supreme Court (PDF)

Full post as published by Chicago Injury Attorney Blog on June 07, 2009 (boomark / email).