Faulty door latches rarely cause car accidents. If a door latch fails during an accident, however, it can contribute to serious, life-altering injuries or the death of vehicle occupants. Because defective car door latches can severely impair vehicle “crashworthiness” – or the ability of a vehicle to sustain a crash and still protect its occupants – car manufacturers have a responsibility to ensure that the door latches work as intended in an accident. When they fail to meet this responsibility, they may be subject to civil liability for victims’ losses.
When you work with the skilled auto defects team at Greene Broillet & Wheeler, LLP, you will benefit from our years of experience and record of success in complex auto defect litigation. With the legal and technical knowledge to pursue these challenging cases, we will serve as dedicated advocates for those who have suffered catastrophic injuries or lost loved ones because of defective car door latches. We want to help you focus on recovering from your injuries, which is why we often work on contingency fees and travel to locations convenient for you and your family.
To reach our Los Angeles car door injury attorneys, call (866) 634-4525 or contact us online to schedule a free consultation. We can serve clients in Southern California and beyond.
Under product liability laws in California, injury victims are empowered to hold product manufacturers accountable for preventable and dangerous design defects. Unlike with a standard car accident lawsuit that relies on proving driver negligence, defective product claims rely on the principle of “strict liability” – meaning that you do not need to demonstrate that the manufacturer was negligent to have a case. By showing that the product was unreasonably safe or dangerous in some aspect of its design, manufacture, or marketing – and that this defect directly caused your injuries even when the product was used as intended – you could be eligible for compensation.
In a faulty door latch claim, the most common argument is that the latch had inherent design defects. For example, a faulty door latch may release and throw the door open when it is hit in a certain way, ejecting passengers from the moving vehicle and exposing them to catastrophic injury risks. If a car door latch tends to jam, occupants may be unable to escape from car fires and other post-crash hazards, turning a minor accident into a fatal one.
Other common car door latch defects include:
At Greene Broillet & Wheeler, LLP, our Los Angeles defective door latch attorneys have the resources to get results in auto defect litigation. The work of our attorneys is supported by a full in-house team of investigators who know how to determine if a door latch is defective – and how to demonstrate that fact to a judge and jury. When necessary, we hire respected automotive experts to examine the evidence and provide their opinions on whether the door latch was defective.
We may also use life-size models of the door latch mechanism to show exactly why the latch failed and how a better design could have prevented the tragedy. In some cases, we may bring the jury to an evidence warehouse to view the actual door from the crashed vehicle.
If you were seriously injured in an accident or lost a family member because of faulty door latches, we can provide a free consultation for your case. Call (866) 634-4525.
Named in Best Lawyers® “Best Law Firms,” Greene Broillet & Wheeler, LLP ranks as Tier 1 Personal Injury Litigation- Plaintiffs in Los Angeles.
Many firm members have been honored by the Consumer Attorneys of California, including Browne Greene, Christine Spagnoli, and Bruce Broillet, recipients of the Marvin E. Lewis Award. In addition, attorneys Bruce Broillet, Scott Carr, Molly McKibben, and Tobin Lanzetta has been honored with the Consumer Attorney of the Year Award.
All of our attorneys are proud to be active members of the Los Angeles County Bar Association or LACBA.
Our attorneys were featured in TopVerdict for having one of the Top 10 Wrongful Death Verdicts in California in 2019, with $15 million won for the plaintiff in Keck v. Bel-Air Bay Club.
Partners Geoff Wells and Ivan Puchalt were both named among the 2025 Consumer Attorney Visionaries by LA Times Studios.
Several partners are active members in the Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles, with attorneys Browne Greene, Bruce Broillet, and Christine Spagnoli named “Trial Lawyer of the Year.”
Firm partners Christine D. Spagnoli and Molly McKibben have both been honored by the Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles and are active members.
After winning $2.6 million for the plaintiff’s side in a head-on collision case, our victory was named in the Top 50 Personal Injury Verdicts in California in 2019 by TopVerdict.
Several of our partners are members in the American Board of Trial Advocates, a national invite-only association consisting of the most experienced trial lawyers.
Our team includes several Fellows and Associates with the invite-only International Society of Barristers in recognition of their trial advocacy.
Greene Broillet & Wheeler, LLP, was featured by TopVerdict in the Top 100 Settlements across all practice areas in California for 2019.
Bruce A. Broillet and Christine D. Spagnoli are Fellows with the invite-only International Academy of Trial Lawyers, a group of elite trial lawyers from over 30 countries.
Recipients of this recognition are held up to the same standards as for The Best Lawyers in America, but only legal professionals in the first ten years of their careers qualify. Four attorneys at GBW have been recognized with this award in 2021.
Founding partners Browne Greene and Bruce A. Broillet are both members of the exclusive invite-only Inner Circle of Advocates, as two of the top 100 plaintiff trial lawyers in America.
Our firm has more attorneys on the Super Lawyers® and Rising Stars lists than any other law firm in Southern California, with 15 members selected.
