2007 News Releases

Plaintiffs' Unfounded Representations to the Court Results in Mistrial in Favor of Ford Motor Company

On February 22, 2007, after nearly two (2) weeks of trial and just hours after plaintiffs rested their case, a mistrial was declared in favor of Ford Motor Company in a jury trial pending in Marion County, Indiana concerning allegations of an alleged defective airbag system in a 1997 Ford F-150. The Court found that “Plaintiff made representations regarding the intended presentation of relevant and necessary foundational evidence for a theory of the Plaintiff’s case when Plaintiff knew he could not lay such a foundation in this trial.”

At trial, plaintiffs repeatedly sought to admit the opinions of their retained biomechanic, Dr. Carley Ward, concerning the benefits to children from depowered airbags and airbags with higher deployment thresholds. Ford argued against the admission of such irrelevant evidence on the grounds that Dr. Ward testified (outside the presence of the jury) that she was not offering any defect opinions, opinions about alternative designs or opinions about the feasibility of depowering airbags or raising deployment thresholds. Further, plaintiffs’ sole airbag design expert, Geoffrey Mahon, had testified and presented only one theory of defect: the airbag sensor on the subject vehicle had a low bias magnet that resulted in airbag deployment at low speeds. Specifically, he testified that the airbag system was defective because Ford should have used an F135 sensor with a 5 or 6 G bias, rather than a 2.3 G bias. Mr. Mahon acknowledged that this was his only defect opinion – he did not criticize the airbag deployment thresholds and did not testify about dual stage or dual threshold airbag systems.

In response to Ford’s arguments and motions, plaintiffs’ counsel represented to the Court that he would present evidence later in trial to establish the predicate foundation for plaintiffs’ theories as required by the Indiana Product Liability Act. Specifically, plaintiffs’ counsel represented that portions of designated deposition testimony of Ford’s retained testifying expert Jeffrey Pearson and of Ford employees, would establish those technologies were feasible for the 1997 F-150. Based on plaintiffs’ representations, the Court ruled that Dr. Ward’s testimony was admissible.

At the close of plaintiffs’ case-in-chief, Ford moved for a directed verdict on plaintiffs’ airbag warning and airbag design theories with regard to plaintiffs’ depowering and raised threshold claims. Plaintiffs failed to call any witness or designate any deposition testimony relative to these issues. During argument on Ford’s directed verdict motions, plaintiffs’ counsel announced that he agreed he had not established depowering or threshold claims. Ford thereafter moved for a mistrial. The Court recognized the prejudicial nature of the evidence and granted mistrial.

The lawsuit was filed by the parents of a then 8-year old child who was the unrestrained front seat passenger of her parents’ 1997 Ford F-150 at the time of the accident. The driver of the 1997 Ford F-150, the child’s mother, was traveling directly behind a 1996 Chevrolet Suburban immediately before the accident. When the driver of the Suburban braked to avoid striking a truck moving into the Suburban’s lane of travel, the child’s mother also braked (when her attention was redirected to the road), but she still rear-ended the Suburban. The other restrained occupants in the vehicle, the mother and her younger child, were not injured. The unrestrained child on whose behalf the claims were brought sustained traumatic brain injury.

Plaintiffs’ counsel: G. Lynn Shumway (Law Office of G. Lynn Shumway, Scottsdale, AZ); Cheryl Ann Planck, Indianapolis, IN.

Ford’s counsel: Patrick X. Fowler and Jeffrey C. Warren (Snell & Wilmer, L.L.P., Phoenix, AZ); Kevin C. Schiferl and Karen M.R. Weber (Locke Reynolds, L.L.P.).

2007 News Releases ~ 2006 News Releases ~ 2005 News Releases

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