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ARTICLE · 26 JULY 2011

Federal District Court Denies Class Certification On Risk Utility Claims

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A United States District Court has again denied plaintiffs' efforts to certify a class related to alleged design flaws in automotive seats.

United StatesLitigation, Mediation & Arbitration
Jeffrey Jones
Jeffrey Jones
J. Todd Kennard
J. Todd Kennard
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A United States District Court has again denied plaintiffs' efforts to certify a class related to alleged design flaws in automotive seats. Lloyd v. General Motors Corp., et al., --- F. Supp.2d ---, 2011 WL 2433091 (D. Md. June 16, 2011). The Lloyd decision is significant because it emphasizes that there are cases where it is not practicable for juries to decide issues related to vehicle design issues, even where the risk-utility standard is used for purposes of evaluation.

The court previously declined to certify a class related to Ford Explorers, Mercury Mountaineers, or Ford Windstars for various model years. The plaintiffs had claimed that the seats in the vehicles at issue in the earlier ruling were defective because they were prone to collapse rearward in certain kinds of collisions. See id. at *1. The plaintiffs sought to recover money damages to strengthen the seats and not for personal injuries. See id.

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