Georgia Supreme Court To Render Key Decision In Hair Relaxer Lawsuit

The Georgia Supreme Court is presently considering a pivotal case that could determine the fate of hundreds of hair relaxer lawsuits. The court will determine whether or not the state’s statute of repose resets with each new purchase of the hair relaxer or remains fixed from the date of the first sale.

The case centers around a single plaintiff, who began using chemical hair relaxers at the age of six and then continued for two decades. She stopped using hair relaxers in 2014. In 2018, the plaintiff was diagnosed with uterine fibroids. Four years later, a medical study suggested a possible connection between the use of hair relaxers and certain health conditions. It was then that the plaintiff filed suit.

Georgia’s statute of repose restricts the timeframe for filing a product liability lawsuit to ten years from the date a product is sold. The question before the Georgia Supreme Court is: Does the 10-year limit start with the consumer’s first use or reset with each subsequent purchase? This may sound like a trivial question, but the fate of hundreds of hair relaxer lawsuits is in play. The plaintiff’s lawsuit challenges the notion that consumers should be barred from filing a product liability lawsuit simply because the product was first used more than a decade ago, even if they continued to use the product during that timeframe.

Understanding the hair relaxer lawsuits 

The hair relaxer lawsuits allege that companies like L’Oreal and Revlon manufactured dangerous products that led consumers to develop cancer. Scientific studies have linked hair relaxer chemicals to multiple types of cancer, including uterine, endometrial, and ovarian cancer. Women who developed these cancers after using hair relaxers for a prolonged period of time may be able to file a lawsuit against the manufacturers of hair relaxers. At present, there are 10,168 lawsuits pending against hair relaxer manufacturers.

According to the lawsuits, people developed cancer after being exposed to dangerous chemicals found in the hair relaxer product. Many women use hair relaxers to straighten their hair. However, research suggests that those who use the product regularly are at increased risk of developing ovarian cancer, uterine cancer, or endometrial cancer.

According to the plaintiffs, the defendants:

• Knew or should have known about the risks concerning hair-relaxing chemicals
• Marketed dangerous products without warning consumers
• Misrepresented the products as “safe” and “natural”

The lawsuits began in 2022 after a 2022 study linked chemical hair relaxers to an increased risk of uterine cancer. The study used data from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS). Researchers found that women who frequently used chemical hair straighteners were twice as likely to develop uterine cancer as those who did not.

Talk to a Florida Product Liability Lawyer Today 

Halpern, Santos & Pinkert represents the interests of plaintiffs in product liability lawsuits. Call our Florida personal injury lawyers today to schedule an appointment, and we can begin investigating your case right away.

Source:

11alive.com/article/news/state/georgia-supreme-hair-relaxer-lawsuit-decision-waits/85-af76ad17-0f0c-4892-be1c-c3d29489af99