Legal Question in Business Law in California
Release form for Settlements
I am a manufacturer and one of our products may have caused some injury to a customer. They are requesting a payment for medical bills and a small amount of lost wages. We are willing to pay, but want to make sure once we pay this person they do not follow-up again a few months later claiming further injury. We also want to make sure that we are not admitting fault since we are not 100% sure that it was a product defect that cause the injury. The product was damaged and could have happened in shipping or while it was sitting in a the retail store. We would just like to avoid any problems since the person is asking for a very reasonable sum.
What type of legal forms would we need and are we opening ourselves up to more problems if we pay this person? Thank you!
3 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Release form for Settlements
What's missing here is any discussion of the role of your insurer. Maybe you don't have liability insurance. If this kind of thing can happen once, it can happen again. Sounds risky to go uninsured. Incidentally, insurance companies and their attorneys are very experienced with creating and using settlement agreements!
Re: Release form for Settlements
Form? No.
Appropriate and complete Release Agreement, yes.
It doesn't require magic to draft, but it does require knowledge. You already recognize the risk, and the need to do the right thing. However, drafting it yourself is unwise, unless you are experienced and knowledgeable about the language necessary. Feel free to contact me if serious about doing this right. A little spent now on legal fees could save a lot of fees later defending a lawsuit that a proper Release could bar.
Re: Release form for Settlements
I will be happy to draft a Release for you for $250.
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