Hospitalized With a Lung Infection After Vaping in Ohio: A Product Claim and Its Deadline

Attorney Answer

Possibly, but two things decide it: timing and proof. A product claim generally has to be filed within two years of the injury; a later start applies only in narrow exposure situations a lawyer would have to assess. And you would have to prove the product was defective, that the defect caused the pneumonia, and who made the product you used.

What a product claim must prove. Ohio Rev. Code § 2307.73(A):

(A) A manufacturer is subject to liability for compensatory damages based on a product liability claim only if the claimant establishes, by a preponderance of the evidence, all of the following:

(1) Subject to division (B) of this section, the manufacturer's product in question was defective in manufacture or construction as described in section 2307.74 of the Revised Code, was defective in design or formulation as described in section 2307.75 of the Revised Code, was defective due to inadequate warning or instruction as described in section 2307.76 of the Revised Code, or was defective because it did not conform to a representation made by its manufacturer as described in section 2307.77 of the Revised Code;

(2) A defective aspect of the manufacturer's product in question as described in division (A)(1) of this section was a proximate cause of harm for which the claimant seeks to recover compensatory damages;

(3) The manufacturer designed, formulated, produced, constructed, created, assembled, or rebuilt the actual product that was the cause of harm for which the claimant seeks to recover compensatory damages.

Causation is usually the hardest part with an illness, and it is proved through medical evidence connecting the product to the condition.

The deadline. Ohio Rev. Code § 2305.10(A):

(A) Except as provided in division (C) or (E) of this section, an action based on a product liability claim and an action for bodily injury or injuring personal property shall be brought within two years after the cause of action accrues. Except as provided in divisions (B)(1), (2), (3), (4), and (5) of this section, a cause of action accrues under this division when the injury or loss to person or property occurs.

For some exposure injuries the clock starts later. Ohio Rev. Code § 2305.10(B)(1):

(B)(1) For purposes of division (A) of this section, a cause of action for bodily injury that is not described in division (B)(2), (3), (4), or (5) of this section and that is caused by exposure to hazardous or toxic chemicals, ethical drugs, or ethical medical devices accrues upon the date on which the plaintiff is informed by competent medical authority that the plaintiff has an injury that is related to the exposure, or upon the date on which by the exercise of reasonable diligence the plaintiff should have known that the plaintiff has an injury that is related to the exposure, whichever date occurs first.

Whether inhaling a vaping product counts as exposure to hazardous or toxic chemicals under that division is an open question, so do not rely on a later start without a lawyer's review. There is also an outside limit for older products, § 2305.10(C)(1):

(C)(1) Except as otherwise provided in divisions (C)(2), (3), (4), (5), (6), and (7) of this section or in section 2305.19 of the Revised Code, no cause of action based on a product liability claim shall accrue against the manufacturer or supplier of a product later than ten years from the date that the product was delivered to its first purchaser or first lessee who was not engaged in a business in which the product was used as a component in the production, construction, creation, assembly, or rebuilding of another product.

Who made it. A claim needs a manufacturer you can identify and reach. A branded product bought from a store is very different from one of unknown or illicit origin, which may leave no one to sue.

What you can do

1. Get your hospital records, including the diagnosis and any note on the suspected cause.

2. Keep the device, cartridges, packaging and receipts, and do not use or alter them.

3. Write down the brand, the product, where and when you bought it, and how long you used it.

4. Talk to a product-liability lawyer soon, because the deadline is short.

5. Even if you are handling this yourself, you would be best served by a brief phone consultation with a local Ohio attorney before you act. Most lawyers offer a short initial call at no cost, and a few minutes on your specific facts — and on how your court actually handles this — is worth more than any general guidance, including this page.

⏱ Time limits apply. Two years from the injury under Ohio Rev. Code § 2305.10(A), with a later start only in the circumstances § 2305.10(B)(1) describes. Do not wait to find out whether yours qualifies.