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Can I sue?

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P

Perked

Guest
SLC, UT

Olla,

When I was approx 4 years old I was playing around with a bic lighter and caught my self on fire. At the time I really didn't understand stop, drop and roll, and also was not familiar with fire safety or even what it could actually do to one.
I received 3rd degree burns from the bottom of my pecks to the bottom of my chin, both hands, and minor burns on the face.

I had to have a skin graph and two other surgery's I do not recall.
I am now 23 with a scar that consumes most of my chest, and another scar that stretches from one side of my to the other About 4 inches long.
Lets not forget the scar from the Skin graph It is on my thigh and approx 8' wide and 12' in length.

This was before there were safety's on lighters if that makes a difference.

Can I sue BIC?

PS: This all happened in 1984-1985
 


I

I AM ALWAYS LIABLE

Senior Member
Perked said:
SLC, UT

Olla,

When I was approx 4 years old I was playing around with a bic lighter and caught my self on fire. At the time I really didn't understand stop, drop and roll, and also was not familiar with fire safety or even what it could actually do to one.
I received 3rd degree burns from the bottom of my pecks to the bottom of my chin, both hands, and minor burns on the face.

I had to have a skin graph and two other surgery's I do not recall.
I am now 23 with a scar that consumes most of my chest, and another scar that stretches from one side of my to the other About 4 inches long.
Lets not forget the scar from the Skin graph It is on my thigh and approx 8' wide and 12' in length.

This was before there were safety's on lighters if that makes a difference.

Can I sue BIC?

PS: This all happened in 1984-1985
Click to expand...


My response:

You had four years from your 18th birthday to bring a lawsuit on your own against BIC. It's now past the Statute of Limitations for you. You are now forever barred from bringing an action for Products Liability and your injuries.

Where were your parents? Why did they sit on this?

IAAL
 
M

meerkat3232

Guest
Sue your parents

I am truly sorry you have mild disfigurement.
There should not have to be a safety disclaimer on lighters, it's common sense. Your parents were negligent, not the Bic company. This runs among the same line of thinking that makes fat people sue McDonalds. Totally unwarranted.
 
E

ellencee

Senior Member
mk3232
Do you think it was truly necessary to belittle the posters valid concerns about scarring on his, her chest, neck, chin, face, hands, and thigh? Mild disfigurement is the scar on my upper lip/face from an auto accident and the scar in and above my left eyebrow from the spider bite. The extent of scarring described by the OP should not have been dismissed as 'mild disfigurement'.
EC
 
B

Beth3

Senior Member
Your parents were negligent, not the Bic company. Whoa. Accidents happen to the children of even the most dilligent and cautious parents. You know nothing about how this happened and aren't remotely in a position to place blame on anyone. Nor are you helping this poster who will forever have to deal with these scars by opining that his parents were negligent.
 
Y

You Are Guilty

Senior Member
Beth3 said:
Your parents were negligent, not the Bic company. Whoa. Accidents happen to the children of even the most dilligent and cautious parents. You know nothing about how this happened and aren't remotely in a position to place blame on anyone. Nor are you helping this poster who will forever have to deal with these scars by opining that his parents were negligent.
Click to expand...

And before you start judging, maybe (at least as I read it), his parents were negligent for not filing a lawsuit before the SoL ran? Now this guy is screwed because of... his parents' negligence.
 
I

I AM ALWAYS LIABLE

Senior Member
You Are Guilty said:
And before you start judging, maybe (at least as I read it), his parents were negligent for not filing a lawsuit before the SoL ran? Now this guy is screwed because of... his parents' negligence.
Click to expand...


My response:

Parents cannot be held liable for a failure to toll the statute of limitations for their child. There is no law (that I know about) that requires a parent to file a lawsuit for their children. This is why the law allows the limitations period to be automatically tolled during the minority of a child - - and the clock only starts to "tick" when the child reaches their majority age; i.e., 18. Then, and in this case, the four years starts to tick away. So, our writer had ample opportunity as an adult to discover his rights through self-knowledge or through legal consultation.

In summary, our writer's parents had no legal duty to take action, and are off the hook. Our writer, on the other hand, could have known, and should have known, his rights and exercised the same within 4 years from his 18 B-day.

IAAL
 
Y

You Are Guilty

Senior Member
I AM ALWAYS LIABLE said:
My response:

Parents cannot be held liable for a failure to toll the statute of limitations for their child. There is no law (that I know about) that requires a parent to file a lawsuit for their children. This is why the law allows the limitations period to be automatically tolled during the minority of a child - - and the clock only starts to "tick" when the child reaches their majority age; i.e., 18. Then, and in this case, the four years starts to tick away. So, our writer had ample opportunity as an adult to discover his rights through self-knowledge or through legal consultation.

In summary, our writer's parents had no legal duty to take action, and are off the hook. Our writer, on the other hand, could have known, and should have known, his rights and exercised the same within 4 years from his 18 B-day.

IAAL
Click to expand...

No arguments, although I didn't use "negligent" in its legal meaning, more of a "damn boy, you got some lazy parents there" meaning.

Either way, I'd hazard a guess that a kid who played with lighters really isn't going to be quite up to date on his right to sue vis-a-vis the tolled SoL. Much less one who posts here for advice.
 
P

Perked

Guest
Screwed? Please i am not screwed i still have all of life ahead of me.

Meerkat3232: 1st People that get Fat from eating to much mcdonalds have nothing to do with this!
They have the ability to change there physical appearance all on there own.
You even comparing the 2 disgusts me.
What will you do when your 4 year old gets ahold of somthing he doesn't understand the consequences to? and then what if retains serious personal injury? WHAT WILL YOU DO ? Shrug it off and say he should of had the common sense NOT to do that?!!?!

I was just curious if i could do anything. That was answered by the on the 1st reply
 
P

Perked

Guest
lol. You the man IAAL!
Not knowing your rights sucks! :mad: Time to dig through this website and consume everything it has to offer. ;)
 
M

meerkat3232

Guest
Apologies to Perked

Perked,

Hey, sorry if I came off the way I did, frivolous lawsuits kind of hit a nerve with me, hence why I mentioned the Mc'Ds example. What would I do you ask? If my child receives injury in my custody, I'll deal with it, my fault. If it happens while I trusted another adult to watch him, I'd go after that person, NOT the manufacturer of the object that caused the injury. The product that injured you did what it was designed to do. If it had exploded in your face due to poor or unchecked manufacture---different story. You are correct in this being a great site for people to learn from, also why your post was answered more than once. It often pays to have all the facts and/or viewpoints in on a particular matter. Once again, apologies and good luck.
 
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