AMICUS
NEWS
AAJ's
amicus curiae brief for Geier
November
23, 1999
SUPREME
COURT TO HEAR AIRBAG PREEMPTION CASE
The Supreme
Court of the United States will address an issue that has been knocking
around the lower courts for years: Can plaintiffs sue automakers for not
providing airbags when federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 allowed
manufacturers to choose between airbags and seat belts?
In Geier
v. American Honda Motor Co., Docket No. 98-1811, plaintiff was injured
when she crashed her 1987 Honda Accord into a tree. Her product liability
action alleged that the Accord was negligently and defectively designed
because Honda had not equipped the car with an airbag. Although the National
Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966 bars the states from establishing
"any safety standard" that is different from a federal standard, Congress
also explicitly provided that "Compliance with any Federal motor vehicle
safety standard issued under this subchapter does not exempt any person
from any liability under common law." 15 U.S.C. 1397(k).
Nevertheless,
the District of Columbia Circuit in this case held that the federal standard
impliedly preempted plaintiff's common law cause of action because liability
would conflict with the decision in Standard 208 to give automakers the
option to choose among passive restraint systems. 166 F.3d 1236 (D.C. Cir.
1999). The Supreme Court granted cert.
AAJ has
filed a brief as amicus curiae urging reversal. At the outset, AAJ argues
that courts must not find preempt state tort remedies unless Congress clearly
and unambiguously intended to do so. Although lawsuits to compensate injured
plaintiffs also provide an incentive for safety, this is not the kind of
direct state regulation that Congress had in mind in preempting state standards.
In fact, the regulatory history of Standard 208 indicates that when NHTSA
allowed choice among passive restraints, it anticipated that potential liability
would motivate manufacturers to provide airbags rather than choose the cheapest
option.
The Court
will hear oral arguments on Dec. 7. Arthur Bryant, Executive Director of
Trial Lawyers for Public Justice, represents plaintiffs.
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