Personal Injury Law

AAJ releases new report, ?Driven to Safety: How Litigation Spurred Auto Safety Innovations?

By Hurley, McKenna & Murtz

The American Association for justice released a report regarding how litigation has spurred safety innovations in the automotive field. (April 2010). The thorough and intriguing report can be found here. In the wake of the highly public and disconcerting Toyota issues, automobile safety is back to being a ?hot button? issue. At Hurley, McKenna, & Mertz, we feel strongly that manufacturers must be held liable for the injuries they have caused. Not only does this allow for just compensation to injured parties, but it also creates incentives for manufactures to take necessary safety precautions.

Following information suggesting that Toyota knew of the defects and sought to save money by limiting recalls, the automaker was slapped with the heftiest fine ever recorded against a car manufacture. Unfortunately, ?after 50 deaths and 8.5 million recalled cars, this saga is yet another example of regulation as an incomplete safeguard and manufacturers that put profits over safety.? This circular scenario has been repeating itself for decades.

Up until the 1960s, ?car manufacturers were only held liable for defects in construction that resulted in accidents and had largely avoided responsibility for defects in design.? Litigation has changed that landscape and has, for decades, been working ?hand-in-hand with regulation to protect Americans, while spurring generations of safety innovations.?

Litigation will again play a critical role in identifying what really went wrong with Toyota. These findings pursuant to litigation will ?aid regulators and legislators in protecting the American public in the future.? Holding manufacturers liable creates a mechanism by which safety precautions are induced in the manufacturing process.

Full post as published by Illinois Car and Truck Accident Lawyer Blog on April 27, 2010 (boomark / email).