New CCH Book Shows How to Avoid Product Liability Problems

(RIVERWOODS, ILL., August 10, 2004) – A wide range of professionals – engineers, business managers, safety managers, lawyers, insurance professionals and consultants – now have an authoritative desktop resource that explains how to identify and head off product liability problems before they occur, according to CCH INCORPORATED (CCH), a leading provider of business information and software and a Wolters Kluwer company. Managing for Products Liability Avoidance, Third Edition, provides a practical reference to help professionals understand and integrate the dual objectives of product quality and legal liability avoidance. (314 pages, $60. For more information or to order call 800-248-3248 or visit the CCH Online Store at business.cch.com/onlinestore.)

A common-sense business perspective to product safety sets the tone for the book, which includes concise commentary, checklists, strategies and practical sample policies.

The book shows how both large and small companies can establish and implement a world-class product integrity program, which limits product liability by keeping unsafe products from entering the market in the first place. Separate chapters detail how a product integrity program is applied to every phase of a product’s life, from pre-production through sales and marketing, the use of instructions and warnings, corporate recordkeeping and self-audits.

Although the primary focus of editor Lewis Bass and his seven expert contributors is on preventative risk management, Managing for Products Liability Avoidance also is valuable for plaintiff and defense counsel, insurance company loss control engineers, expert witnesses and manufacturers who have to defend themselves in product liability litigation. The new edition outlines the rules relating to the introduction of scientific evidence and expert witnesses that have changed since the last edition, discusses international warnings and labels, preemption of medical devices, attorney-client privilege, hazards of documentation and supplier selection and surveillance. Coverage includes international product quality procedures and the most recent ISO 9000 Quality Standards. This new edition also addresses the impact of the Restatement of Products Liability 3rd, including the definition of a defect, post-sale responsibilities and used equipment.

About the Editor and Contributors

Editor Lewis Bass is a product liability prevention attorney, professional safety engineer and founder of Lewis Bass, International (www.lewisbass.com). For over 26 years, he and his staff have provided safe product design, product liability prevention consultation and warnings and labels to large and small companies in Asia, Europe and throughout the United States. Bass is a frequent speaker at conferences around the world and gives workshops on product safety, risk assessment and liability prevention.

The contributing authors to Managing for Products Liability Avoidance are:

Kenneth Ross, affiliated with the national product liability law firm of Bowman and Brook LLP;
John R. Heitkamp, Jr., Vice President, Senior Counsel-Regulatory Affairs and Privacy Officer for Fortis Health, Milwaukee, WI.;
James J. Seifert, Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary for Beamis Company, Minneapolis, MN.;
John T. Wagener, Partner in Arnstein & Lehr;
James W. Kolka, President of Q-Lex International LLC, an international quality management and environmental management consulting firm;
Gregory G. Scott, member of the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission;
Geoffrey Peckham, President and CEO of Hazard Communication Systems (HCS).

For more information or to order Managing for Products Liability Avoidance, Third Edition, call CCH at 800-248-3248 or visit the CCH Online Store at business.cch.com/onlinestore. Single copy price is $60; quantity discounts are available.

About CCH INCORPORATED

CCH INCORPORATED, headquartered in Riverwoods, Ill., was founded in 1913 and has served four generations of business professionals and their clients. The company produces more than 700 electronic and print products for the tax, legal, securities, human resources, health care and small business markets. The CCH Business and Finance Group web site can be accessed at business.cch.com. CCH is a Wolters Kluwer company (www.wolterskluwer.com). Wolters Kluwer NV is a leading multinational publisher and information services company, with annual revenues (2003) of EUR 3.4 billion and approximately 19,500 employees worldwide.

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