Chances are that over the past few years you’ve seen the advertisements for “Shape-Ups,” a fitness shoe created by Sketchers. Shape-Ups feature a patented design with rolling heel, and Sketchers claim that this new design gives its wearers a gym-quality workout while they walk around and do their day-to-day activities. Unfortunately, dozens of people are claiming in a class-action lawsuit that, rather than getting in better shape, they suffered severe personal injuries from wearing the shoes, which means that Shape-Ups are a defective product. Some of plaintiffs claim that those personal injuries were caused from sudden falls, while others claim that they were repetitive injuries caused by long-term use. Despite the differences in the types of injuries, the plaintiffs in this personal injury lawsuit assert that wearing Shape-Ups directly led to those injuries, which is why they’re trying to hold Sketchers responsible.
Although class-action lawsuits are unusual, these 37 plaintiffs chose to join together because so many of them suffered in the same way and for largely the same reason: Sketchers marketed the product as safe, and when they purchased the product they assumed it was safe, only to suffer personal injuries at a later time. The plaintiffs in this personal injury case who suffered hip fractures or torn ligaments are hoping to achieve a settlement on the basis of the fact that Sketchers has not released information pertaining to safety tests for Shape-Ups, which leads the plaintiffs to believe that they were deceitful in their marketing.
Regardless of the outcome or even the validity of the case, this lawsuit is a good example of how turning to a personal injury law firm is the only way to win compensation for medical expenses, lost time at work, and emotional pain and suffering after falling victim to a personal injury, especially one resulting from product liability, an area where causality can be difficult to prove. Our New York City personal injury lawyers are experts at determining what the best course of action is to take when accident victims don’t know what to do, so contact us if you’ve been injured in an accident caused by a defective product of any kind, and we will do our utmost to help you win the personal injury settlements you deserve.