Defective Product Injury Evidence Guide
A product claim starts with the exact item and how it was used, stored and changed before and after the injury. A recall for a similar model is a lead, not a finding that this unit failed or caused this injury. California’s product instructions distinguish manufacturing, design and warning theories, so the useful record includes the product, its identifiers, instructions, purchase path and event sequence.
Hurt Advice editorial guide. Source review: . This guide does not state that the attorney authored, reviewed or approved it. Visit the profile for public licensing and background records.
Review the attorney’s public background, then confirm experience and availability directly.
Raffi Naljian
Founder, Civil Litigation, Personal Injury & Criminal Defense Attorney
Raffi Garabed Naljian is the founder of Naljian Law Offices and an active California attorney under State Bar #238919. A Los Angeles Times profile says he founded the firm in 2008 after beginning his legal career in 1997, and the State Bar lists personal injury, litigation, criminal law, and business law among his self-reported practice areas.
View Raffi Naljian's full verified profilePrimary identity record
Learn more about Raffi Naljian
This is a focused supporting page. Use Raffi Naljian's full sourced attorney profile as the primary identity record for biography, role, languages, office information, and public-record links. Review that profile alongside the issue-specific preparation and public sources below.
The State Bar record lists Raffi Garabed Naljian as an active California attorney, State Bar #238919. Hurt Advice is a separate referral and legal information service, not the attorney's law firm.
How to Evaluate Attorney Fit for This Issue
Use the worksheet to identify the product’s custodian and the alleged failure before considering testing. Counsel can assess which defect theory and lawful inspection process fit. Stop using an unsafe item and follow official recall or safety directions; preservation should never require a dangerous test or unsafe storage.
Consultation worksheet
Product identity, condition and custody worksheet
Record the holder, what each source shows and the gap it leaves. Do not open, energize or test a potentially unsafe product for this worksheet.
There is no submit or save action. Copy your notes before leaving this page.
Who holds the item or parts? Which brand, model, lot and serial identifiers are legible, and what changed after the incident?
Who holds the manual, label, installation and maintenance records? What use actually preceded failure, and which instruction was available then?
Which receipt, listing or retailer record ties this unit to a seller and date? Is the distributor or installer still unknown?
Which original image or witness shows what broke or malfunctioned? What is an observation versus a possible defect explanation?
Does an official recall or report cover this exact model and lot? If only a similar product appears, what gap remains?
Sources for this guide
- Judicial Council of California: Civil Jury Instructions (2026), CACI 1201–1205
Official instructions distinguish manufacturing, design and warning defect theories and related proof questions.
- U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission: Recalls
Official recall search; a notice must be matched to the exact product and does not itself decide an individual injury claim.
- CPSC: Consumer product safety reports and questions
Official reporting and product-safety context; agency reports are leads rather than proof of a particular defect.
- CPSC: Products outside its jurisdiction
CPSC does not regulate every product; the correct regulator depends on product type.
- California Courts: Subpoena business records
Explains the formal process for obtaining nonparty business records in a lawsuit and the notice required for consumer or employee records; a private request alone does not compel production.
What to Do Next
- 1Stop unsafe use. If safe, photograph the item, parts, labels, packaging and original instructions before a return, repair or disposal; record any safety-driven change.
- 2Save the model, serial, lot and purchase information so any recall or incident report can be compared with this particular unit.
- 3Write a factual use-and-failure timeline with witnesses and original photos, separating observed breakage from a proposed engineering explanation.
- 4Identify retailer, installer, repairer and manufacturer records that may exist, then ask counsel about safe storage and any expert inspection.
Evidence Checklist
- The unit or safely retained components, with model, serial, lot and current custodian
- Original packaging, labels, warnings, manual and purchase or listing records
- Dated pre- and post-event photos, repair or installation history and witness contacts
- Clinical documentation plus exact-model recall or incident-search results with search date
Keep your unanswered questions handy when comparing the attorney’s public profile with your needs.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Testing or storing an unsafe product merely to preserve evidence
- Assuming a recall for a similar name or model proves this unit was defective
- Returning or altering an item without documenting what it was, who received it and why it changed
How the Process Typically Works
Make safe and identify
Stop unsafe use, follow official safety instructions and record the exact model, lot and existing condition.
Trace the unit
Match purchase, installation, repair and warning documents to this product and its actual use.
Test the theory
Ask what observed failure supports a manufacturing, design or warning question and what qualified examination, if any, is warranted.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does an official recall prove my product caused the injury?
No. Check the model, lot, time and issue covered, then compare the particular unit and event. A recall or incident report is a useful lead, not an individual causation ruling.
Should I keep a hazardous item?
Safety comes first. Stop use and follow a recall or official safety direction. If safe, document identifiers, condition and custody; get qualified advice about safe storage or disposal where preservation conflicts with safety.
Can I demand manufacturer testing files?
A manufacturer may hold private design and testing records. Access can require a voluntary response or formal discovery if a case proceeds; do not assume public recall databases contain those files.
Use the attorney’s public background as a starting point for a direct conversation about fit.
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Important Disclosures
Attorney Advertising. Hurt Advice is a lawyer-referral and legal-information service, not a law firm. This website provides general information, not legal advice. Viewing a page or submitting a form does not create an attorney-client relationship. Independent participating attorneys decide whether to accept a matter, and representation begins only under a separate written agreement. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome; results depend on the facts and circumstances of each matter.