Accident and Injury Lawyer Blog

Johnson & Johnson has announced the recall of Aveeno Baby Calming Comfort Lotion. The recall only affects one lot that was shipped only to a few states.

The recall was initiated as a precautionary measure after testing indicated that the lot exceeded the specifications for common bacteria. Extensive testing has been performed since by an independent lab, and has not shown that specifications were exceeded; however, Johnson & Johnson Consumer Companies initiated the recall out of an abundance of caution.

The only affected lot is lot number: 0161LK with a UPC Code of: 38137-0036456. The recalled product was shipped to Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas.

Dogs are people too. Pretty much. For many of us.

So we report here on Proctor & Gamble Company has retrieved a single production lot of dry dog food as aflatoxin levels, above the acceptable limit, have been detected. This product has already been retrieved from store shelves.

Aflatoxin is a naturally occurring by-product from the growth of Aspergillus flavus and can be harmful to pets if consumed in significant quantities. Pets who have consumed this product and exhibit symptoms of illness including sluggishness or lethargy combined with a reluctance to eat, vomiting, yellowish tint to the eyes or gums, or diarrhea should be seen by a veterinarian.

The affected dog food is as follows:

• Product Name: Iams ProActive Health Smart Puppy dry dog food with Use By/Expiration Dates of February 5 or February 6, 2013
• Version: 7.0 lb bag; Code Date: 12784177I6; UPC Code: 1901402305
• Version: 8.0 lb bag; Code Date: 12794177D2 and 12794177D3; UPC Code: 1901410208
• Version: 17.5 lb bag; Code Date: 12794177K1 and 12794177K2; UPC Code: 1901401848

The affected product lot was distributed to a limited number of retailers located in the eastern United States: Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Maine, Mississippi, North Carolina, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Virginia. These retailers have already removed this product from store shelves.

While no health effects related to this product have been reported, P&G retrieved this product from the shelves as a precautionary measure. Consumers who purchased the affected dog food should stop using it, discard it, and contact Iams a replacement voucher.

No other dry dog food, dry cat food, dog or cat canned food, biscuits/treats or supplements are affected by this announcement.

Dogs matter. I'm glad Proctor is doing the right thing by making sure our animals are safe.

Mars Food has recalled two date codes of Uncles Ben's Whole Grain White Rice Garden Vegetable, due to an undeclared milk allergen. People who have an allergy or severe sensitivity to milk run the risk of serious or life-threatening allergic reaction if they consume these products.

The recall, affecting ONLY the Whole Grain White Rice Garden Vegetable, affects the 4.7 oz. (133 g) boxes with the following:

• UPC code of 54800 40778
• Best before: 08/12
• Code dates: 133BA4RP06 and 133BB4RP06

An ingredient supplier improperly included an undeclared milk ingredient in the seasoning mix used for this product. As such, consumers with milk allergies are advised not to eat the product, and consumers should return the product to the store where it was purchased for a full refund.

This product was distributed through retail stores in Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Vermont and Wisconsin.

Mars Food US has not received any reports of illness or other consumer complaints related to this matter. No other flavors of Uncle Ben's Whole Grain White Rice or any other Uncle Ben's products are affected.

Nygala will recall approximately 10,000 Halloween Projection Flashlights, as the flashlights can overhead, blister and melt, posing a fire and burn hazard to consumers. Better late than never. I guess.

These Chinese made flashlights are black and orange plastic, and the flashlight is 6 ½ inches long with pumpkins, bats, witches, haunted houses and cats on the handle. The flashlights came with six different plastic lenses that attach to the flashlight to project various images, including a pumpkin, bat, witch, haunted house and cat. The flashlights packaging is imprinted with “Flomo,” “HW189” and UPC 677916518266 on the packaging.

The recalled Halloween flashlights were sold at discount stores in California, Connecticut, Florida, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas and Utah from August 2010 through October 2011 for about $1.

The firm has received one reported incident involving a flashlight that overheated, blistered and melted.

Badia Spices is recalling approximately 3,800 lbs. of Pinenuts, as they may be contaminated with Salmonella Enteritidis, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems.

The pine nuts were sold in retail stores in Florida, New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and New Jersey - between June 2011 and October 2011. No illnesses have been reported for any Badia brand pine nuts to date.

Badia Spices is recalling the following lots of Pinenuts:

• (UPC) 033844 00068 – 1 oz Pine nuts in small plastic bags Lot # 84666
• (UPC) 033844 00733 – 2 oz Pine nuts in pet bottles Lot # 83184, 85442

Badia Spices repacked bulk pine nuts which were imported from Turkey and subsequently recalled by Sunrise Commodities. The bulk pine nuts have been linked to an outbreak of Salmonella Enteritidis illness.

• Sunrise Commodities' Pine Nuts Recall
• Wegman's Pine Nuts Recall

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning consumers not to eat Turkish pine nuts, distributed by Sunrise Commodities, after tests have confirmed the presence of Salmonella.

The FDA is collaborating with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to investigate a multistate outbreak of Salmonella Enteritidis infections. To date, there are reports of at least 42 illnesses associated with the outbreak in Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia.

As part of FDA’s investigation, samples of Turkish pine nuts from a warehouse used by Sunrise Commodities were collected.

Sunrise Commodities has already recalled four lots of the product implicated in this matter, totaling more than 21,000 pounds of pine nuts.

The affected nuts were packed in 22-pound boxes and included the markings:

• Warehouse Lot 27963 with the identifying code “PO#: 50165”
• Warehouse Lot 29628 with the identifying code “PO#: 50558”
• Warehouse Lot 27713 with the identifying code “PO#: 49595”
• Warehouse Lot 27427 with the identifying code “PO#: 50032”

Sunrise Commodities distributed the Turkish pine nuts in bulk to various food vendors in Florida, New Jersey, New York and Canada. A recall notification was issued by Sunrise to its customers on November 3, 2011, alerting them of the test results and of the epidemiologic investigation.

Wegmans Food Markets, recalled the product from their stores on October 26, 2011. As the investigation continues, additional recalls may take place.

Wells Enterprises is voluntarily recalling a limited number of packages of its Blue Bunny® Personals® ice cream, due to a mispackaging incident.

On a limited number of packages, the lid indicates the product as Blue Bunny Super Chunky Cookie Dough ice cream, while the carton itself indicates the product as Blue Bunny Peanut Butter Panic ice cream. The product contained in the is Super Chunky Cookie Dough. The ingredient statement on the carton does not declare wheat, which is an ingredient in the Super Chunky Cookie Dough product. People who have an allergy or severe sensitivity to wheat and/or have gluten sensitivities may be at risk from consuming these products.

The mispackaged Blue Bunny ice cream was distributed in 5.5 fl oz. The cartons affected are indicated by Lot Number 10009 “Best Used By” date 10/1/2012, - UPC 0 70640 00463. The lot number and UPC can be found printed on the side of the carton.

The affected product was shipped to the following states: Kansas, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Iowa, Oklahoma, Nebraska, North Dakota, Tennessee, Florida, Wisconsin, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Massachusetts, and Texas.

Wells Enterprises became aware of the packaging error after receiving a report from a store that the lid and cup were for different products. The allergy alert and recall relates only to the above mentioned mispackaged Blue Bunny ice cream. No other Blue Bunny ice cream products are affected.

American Egg Products is recalling their frozen egg product, as it may be contaminated with Salmonella. The affected egg product was distributed to Georgia and Florida, and sold to three distributors and food manufacturers.

The product, American Egg Products Frozen Eggs, comes in five pound paper cartons. The Lot # 272-1 is printed across the side of the master case, and the plant number: 272 1 P 1105 is imprinted inside each individual carton. The recall was initiated as a result of a routine sampling, revealed that the finished product contained Salmonella. American Egg Products has stopped distribution of the frozen eggs.

Just yesterday, we reported that Salmonella was being linked to organic eggs, distributed by Larry Schultz Organic Farm. Salmonella is an organism that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems.

No illnesses have been reported to date in connection with this product.

• Salmonella
• Even More Egg Recalls
• Egg Recalls

Last week the lettuce recall was due to Listeria, this week we have moved on to Salmonella concerns.

Taylor Farms Retail Inc. has issued a precautionary recall of 3,265 cases of various salad blends, as a random test of packaged spinach showed the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella.

The bagged salad products subject to the recall include:

• Fresh Selections Hearts of Romaine 10 oz. bag 0-11110-91044-8 TFRS277B07OOKR5L Best By 10-18-11
• Fresh Selections Leafy Romaine 10 oz. bag 0-11110-91046-2 TFRS277B07OOKR5H Best By 10-18-11
• Fresh Selections Field of Greens 10 oz. bag 0-11110-91042-4 TFRS277B07OOKR5F Best By 10-18-11
• Fresh Selections Romaine Blend 10 oz. bag 0-11110-91038-7 TFRS277B07OOKR5N Best By 10-18-11
• HEB Spring Mix 5 oz. bag 0-41220-19752-1 TFRS277B07 Best By 10-20-11
• Marketside Fresh Spinach 10oz bag 6-81131-32946-0 TFRS277A07 Guaranteed Delicious By 10-21-11
• Marketside Caesar Salad Kit 14.6 oz. bag 6-81131-38744-6 TFRS277B07 Guaranteed Delicious By 10-19-11
• Marketside Asian Salad Kit 15 oz. bag 6-81131-53211-2 TFRS277B07 Guaranteed Delicious By 10-19-11
• Marketside Southwest Salad Kit 15oz bag 6-81131-38747-7 TFRS277B07 Guaranteed Delicious By 10-19-11
• Marketside Premium Romaine 9 oz. bag 6-81131-38753-8 TFRS277B07 Guaranteed Delicious By 10-19-11
• Marketside Premium Romaine Family 18 oz. bag 6-81131-38807-8TFRS277B07 Guaranteed Delicious By 10-19-11
• Taylor Farms Field Greens 8 oz. bag 0-30223-04036-1 TFRS277B07 Best If Used By 10-20-11

The products were distributed in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Kentucky, Missouri, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, Washington and Puerto Rico and sold in various retail supermarkets.

No other products or code dates are affected by this recall, and there have been no reported illnesses attributed to the recalled items.

• Lettuce Recall: Listeria Concerns

I wrote last week about the whole "settle case over policy limits and sue for bad faith" gambit last week. Here is another opinion from Tampa, Florida where the plaintiffs' accident lawyer did the exact same thing. Sure this one failed too. Still.

Ultimately, the "insured dragged its feet on settlement" is a tough road to hoe.

You can read the full opinion in Machalette v. Southern-Owners Insurance Co. here.

A medical malpractice lawsuit on behalf of a Florida veteran will begin this week against the Miami Veterans’ Administration hospital. In the lawsuit, the plaintiff claims he contracted hepatitis C from an unclean medical device used in a 2007 colonoscopy. This may be the bellwether trial on this issue: there are a dozen similar lawsuits that have been filed in Florida and more have been filed in Tennessee. (Certainly, Tennessee - even with their new malpractice restrictions - is a more hospitable place than Florida for medical malpractice lawsuits.)

Cucumbers have been recalled after reports of a potential bacterial contamination. L&M Companies the recall for its whole cucumber product after the FDA informed the company that at least some of their cucumbers Salmonella.

Do you have cucumbers in your fridge subject to this recall? The recalled cucumbers have been distributed in different areas, namely: New York, Nebraska, Indiana, Texas, Illinois, Tennessee, Wyoming, and Florida (where the problem was found).

Bristol West is a private passenger automobile insurance company that is focused in Florida but provides bodily injury and physical damage car insurance to drivers across the United States. Dealing with Bristol West is the same as dealing with Farmers Insurance, who bought Bristol West in 2007.

The Bristol West name is slowly being extinguished. Bristol West is merging into Foremost, another Farmers insurance company.

According to a recently published Jury Verdict Research study, the average verdict in a personal injury lawsuit in Florida is $1,732,150. Huge and almost invariably uncollectable verdicts, because of caps on a defendant's ability to pay, and overturned verdicts inflate the average to a number that is really no longer meaningful. The better measure, the median verdict, was $149,411.

The breakdown of the injuries relative to the verdicts in the study were interesting:

Spinal Disc Injury: 24%
Spinal Nerve Injury: 9%
Fatality: 7% (the median jury verdict in a death case in Florida is $2,718,372)
Knee Injury: 6%
Back and Neck Strains: 6%

The C.R. Bard Avaulta vaginal mesh implanted to treat pelvic organ prolapse may put women at risk for internal injuries and urinary problems. Bard Avaulta mesh lawsuits allege that the defective design of the device may increase the risk of infection, erosion and other painful complications. Plaintiffs seek damages from C. R. Bard, Inc., which makes and sells Avaulta Plus and Avaulta Solo synthetic surgical mesh tissue supports.

Women suffer from pelvic organ prolapse often after childbirth or surgery. Pelvic organ prolapse affects a woman when organs near the pelvis drop from their normal position and put pressure on the vagina. Mesh products have been designed to address problems that stem from prolapse, which include difficulties with bowel and bladder functions or during sex.

The Bard Avaulta vaginal mesh lawsuits allege that the vaginal slings were negligently designed, causing pain and other complications. The problem for many vaginal mesh users has been an erosion of the mesh into the vaginal wall causing tearing, cutting, and sometimes permanent erosion of the vaginal tissues.

If you think you may have a potential Bard Avaulta vaginal mesh lawsuit, call 800-553-8082 or get a free online defective vaginal sling case evaluation.

The Associated Press has an article on medical malpractice cases in Florida that says it all with the title: "Another good year for medical malpractice insurers." The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation reports that malpractice insurance companies have enjoyed profitability for six consecutive years in Florida and that the average return on surplus for them in 2009 was 6.6 percent.

When these glorious profits are reduced, when these insurance companies fall into the inevitable ebb and flow of profit years and leaner years, we will instantly have ourselves another full blown medical malpractice crisis.

The family of a University of North Florida professor who died during a CT scan was was awarded $6.2 million in his medical malpractice wrongful death case.

It is pretty incredible how vitriolic the comments are from readers of this story on the case.

A Florida appeals court ruled against the Plaintiff in a claim against a surgical center. The crux of the opinion: whether the patient chose the surgery center is going to be the key to whether a wrongful death claim against the a surgery center will survive.

One frustrating issue personal injury lawyers must deal with is assignments and authorizations which often require clients to sign away substantial rights to get the medical treatment they need.

This is a sample assignment and authorization from Florida that really cuts off substantive rights to the client. But the problem is that the client who signs an assignment and authorization placing a lien on their recovery typically does not have health insurance to get the needed medical treatment. So what choice does the client really have?

I am not, by the way, suggesting that doctors should not have a right to get placed in line ahead of personal injury plaintiffs in exchange for medical treatment (or to delay filing a lawsuit for payment). I just object to the one-sided unbalanced nature of most assignments and authorizations that my clients are required to sign.

Strong allegations from Florida: a class action nursing home lawsuit claims a Lake Worth nursing home that a engaged in scheme to defraud Medicare and Medicaid and "prey on vulnerable adults."

The lead plaintiff seeks a class action after injuries frequently the subject of nursing home lawsuits: disfiguring ulcers on her heels. The nursing home denies liability but has asked a law firm to investigate the allegations. The ole "I didn't do it but let me investigate whether I did it" plan of attack.

Lake Worth Manor has been a troubled nursing home. It has the lowest possible rating from Florida's Agency for Health Care Administration and has spent 31 days on Florida's watch list. The nursing home's co-medical director, who just stepped down from his position, has a history that, well, let's say it makes you think he should not be running a nursing home.

The lesson, as always: we have to many inadequate nursing home in Florida and throughout the country.