Despite most courts throughout the country still not resuming civil jury trials, you can keep your trial skills sharp by watching the top trial attorneys in the country working in front of real juries with a subscription to Courtroom View Network’s trial video library.
This week, among the hundreds of trials available, we’re highlighting 10 “must-watch” automotive product liability trials. These trials, including both plaintiff and defense verdicts, showcase high-stakes cases against major automotive manufacturers.
For just $99/month with no contract, or even less with an annual subscription, watch the full opening and closing statements and all witness testimony in each of these trials. Examine high-quality, digital images of the demonstratives and exhibits used to convey they key technical arguments central to these cases. Watch how top expert witnesses - some used to the courtroom and some not - actually react on the stand under tough cross-examination.
Become a subscriber today, and get unlimited, gavel-to-gavel access to all of these trials and hundreds more.
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1.) Walden v. Chrysler (Decatur County, Georgia)
$150 million verdict in first Jeep fuel tank trial
CVN screenshot of Jim Butler delivering his closing argument in a darkened courtroom
Gavel-to-gavel video of the trial: https://cvn.com/proceedings/walden-v-chrysler-group-llc-trial
Plaintiff counsel: Jim Butler (Butler Wooten & Peak LLP), Jeb Butler (Butler Tobin LLC), George Floyd (Floyd & Kendrick LLC)
Defense counsel: Brian Bell (Swanson Martin & Bell LLP), Terry Brantley (Swift Currie McGhee & Hiers), Bruce Kripo (Kripo Lawyers), Karsten Bicknese (Seacrest Kares Tate & Bicknese LLP)
Why you should watch: A Georgia state court jury walloped Fiat Chrysler Automobiles with a $150 million verdict in 2015 in a suit brought by the parents of a child who burned to death after their Jeep Grand Cherokee was struck from behind, and the vehicle’s gas tank exploded, in the first case of its kind to go to trial.
More via the CVN News Blog: https://blog.cvn.com/chrysler-smacked-with-150m-verdict-in-first-jeep-fuel-tank-fire-trial
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2.) Uno v. Toyota (Los Angeles, California)
$10 million verdict in first Toyota sudden acceleration trial
CVN screenshot of Garo Mardirossian delivering his closing argument
Gavel-to-gavel video of the trial: https://cvn.com/proceedings/toyota-motor-cases-trial-2013-07-12
Plaintiff counsel: Garo Mardirossian, Armen Akaragian (Mardirossian & Associates, Inc.)
Defense counsel: Vincent Galvin, Mark Berry, Curtis Jimerson (Bowman & Brooke LLP), John Duffy, Rene Faucher (Gray Duffy LLP)
Why you should watch: A jury cleared Toyota Motor Corp. of liability in 2015 in a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of a Southern California woman killed in a 2009 crash that occurred amid widespread reports of unintended acceleration involving Toyota vehicles, but found the driver of the vehicle liable for $10 million in damages.
More via NBC Los Angeles: https://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/toyota-unintended-acceleration-crash-noriko-uno-wrongful-death-lawsuit/1961543/
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3.) Call v. Subaru (Kanawha County, West Virginia)
Design of SUV’s fuel line found not to be the cause for fatal fire following head-on collision
The full front section of a Subaru Forester sits under a tarp in the courtroom
Gavel-to-gavel video of the trial: https://cvn.com/proceedings/call-et-al-v-subaru-trial-2017-01-23
Plaintiff counsel: Mark Garren, Brent Kesner (Kesner & Kesner), Chad Lovejoy (Duffield Lovejoy Stemple & Boggs), Scott Segal (Segal Law Firm)
Defense counsel: Christopher Spencer, Adam Lounsbury (Spencer Shuford LLP), Philip Combs (Thomas Combs & Spann PLLC)
Why you should watch: A West Virginia state court jury determined in 2017 that Subaru was not responsible for the deaths of three passengers who died in a fire after their 1999 Forester sport utility vehicle was struck in a head-on collision.
More via the CVN News Blog: https://blog.cvn.com/cvn-top-10-most-impressive-defense-verdicts-of-2017
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4.) Khiabani v. Motor Coach Industries (Las Vegas, Nevada)
Bus manufacturer hit with $18.7 million verdict over cyclist’s death
CVN screenshot of plaintiff attorney William Kemp delivering his opening statement
Gavel-to-gavel video of the trial: https://cvn.com/proceedings/katayoun-barin-v-motor-coach-industries-inc-trial-2018-02-12
Plaintiff counsel: William Kemp, Eric Pepperman (Kemp Jones & Coulthard LLP), Peter Christiansen (Eglet Law), Kendelee Works (Christiansen Law Offices)
Defense counsel: Mark Ferrario (Greenberg Traurig LLP), Michael Terry, Darrell Barger (Hartline Dacus Barger Dreyer LLP), D. Lee Roberts (Weinberg Wheeler Hudgins Gunn & Dial LLC)
Why you should watch: A Nevada state court jury awarded $18.7 million in 2018 to the family of a surgeon killed after being sideswiped on his bicycle by a bus, in the first products liability trial of its kind over claims that a bus’ allegedly faulty aerodynamic design created a sucking force that caused the fatal accident.
More via the CVN News Blog: https://blog.cvn.com/bus-manufacturer-hit-with-18.7m-verdict-over-defective-design-that-caused-cyclists-death
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5.) Batts v. Ford Motor Company (Nash County, North Carolina)
Settlement during jury deliberations in $31 million seat belt defect case
CVN screenshot of Sandra Ezell delivering her closing argument
Gavel-to-gavel video of the trial: https://cvn.com/proceedings/batts-v-ford-motor-co-trial-2015-02-16
Plaintiff counsel: J. Kent Emison (Langdon & Emison), Hoyt Tessener (Martin & Jones PLLC)
Defense counsel: Sandra Ezell (Bowman & Brooke LLP)
Why you should watch: Ford Motor Co. settled a $31 million product liability suit over the design of a seat belt in 2015 in North Carolina state court, narrowly avoiding a mistrial after the jury claimed to be deadlocked following weeks of testimony about whether or not the belt caused a teenager’s paralysis.
More via the CVN News Blog: https://blog.cvn.com/breaking-ford-settles-31m-seat-belt-design-suit-avoiding-mistrial
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6.) Cruz v. Nissan (Los Angeles, California)
$25 million verdict over brake failure that caused fatal collision
CVN screenshot of Paul Kiesel delivering his closing argument
Gavel-to-gavel video of the trial: https://cvn.com/proceedings/araceli-mendez-et-al-v-nissan-north-america-et-al-trial-2017-06-20
Plaintiff counsel: Brett Turnbull, Ryan Lutz, Jerome Tapley (Cory Watson Attorneys), Kirk Wolden (Carter Wolden Curtis LLP), Paul Kiesel (Kiesel Law LLP)
Defense counsel: Thomas Klein, Julian Senior, Jordan Tabak (Bowman & Brooke LLP)
Why you should watch: A California state court jury slammed Nissan with a $25 million verdict in 2017 after determining that an SUV’s defective brakes caused an accident that killed three people and resulted in an elderly driver being wrongfully charged with vehicular manslaughter.
More via the CVN News Blog: https://blog.cvn.com/nissan-hit-with-25m-verdict-over-brake-failure-that-caused-fatal-collision
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7.) Llera v. Ford Motor Company (Palm Beach County, Florida)
Ford cleared at $2.4 million trial over airbag deployment in fatal crash
CVN screenshot of Francis McDonald delivering his closing argument
Gavel-to-gavel video of the trial: https://cvn.com/proceedings/llera-v-ford-motor-co-trial-2017-07-10/lawyer/ford-motor-co-inc
Plaintiff counsel: Esther Zaretsky, Richard Zaretsky, Abraham Zaretsky (Zaretsky Law Group)
Defense counsel: Courtney King, Francis McDonald (McDonald Toole Wiggins PA)
Why you should watch: Ford Motor Co. and the airbags in its 2003 Mustang were not responsible for a South Florida crash that killed a 20-year old, jurors found in 2017 at a trial against the auto giant.
More via the CVN News Blog: https://blog.cvn.com/ford-cleared-in-trial-over-airbag-deployment-in-deadly-crash
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8.) Johns v. Suzuki (Decatur County, Georgia)
$12.5 million awarded over motorcycle brake defect
CVN screenshot of plaintiff attorney Randy Edwards delivering his closing argument
Gavel-to-gavel video of the trial: https://cvn.com/proceedings/johns-v-suzuki-motor-corp-et-al-trial-2018-01-29
Plaintiff counsel: Randy Edwards, Paul Poland (Cochran & Edwards), John Sherrod (Sherrod & Bernard)
Defense counsel: Randall Riggs (Frost Brown Todd LLC), Michael Goldman (Hawkins Parnell Thackston & Young LLP)
Why you should watch: A Georgia jury in 2018 found Suzuki Motor Corp. and its American subsidiary responsible for the motorcycle crash that shattered a Georgia man’s spine, handing down a $12.5 million verdict at trial against the companies.
More via the CVN News Blog: https://blog.cvn.com/breaking-12.5m-verdict-pops-suzuki-as-jury-finds-brake-defect-caused-motorcyclists-wreck
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9.) Cobos v. Navistar (Las Vegas, Nevada)
$3.4 million verdict after faulty emergency brake sends truck rolling into traffic
CVN screenshot of plaintiff attorney Samuel Harding delivering his opening statement
Gavel-to-gavel video of the trial: https://cvn.com/proceedings/zuhey-cabos-v-jmr-cls-inc-trial-2018-05-01
Plaintiff counsel: Samuel Harding, Sean Claggett (Claggett & Sykes Law Firm)
Defense counsel: Daniel Rodman, Morgan Petrelli (Snell & Wilmer LLP), Gordon Park (McCormick Barstow LLP)
Why you should watch: A Nevada state court jury slapped truck manufacturer Navistar International Corp. and a local towing company with a $3.38 million verdict in 2018 in a products liability lawsuit filed by a woman injured after a tow truck parked at a gas station rolled down an incline onto a busy street.
More via the CVN News Blog: https://blog.cvn.com/navistar-hit-with-3.4m-verdict-after-faulty-emergency-brake-sends-truck-rolling-into-oncoming-traffic
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10.) Chen v. LA Truck Centers (Los Angeles, California)
Bus dealership prevails in $58 million fatal rollover trial
CVN screenshot of defense attorney Douglas Robinson delivering his closing argument
Gavel-to-gavel video of the trial: https://cvn.com/proceedings/hairu-chen-et-al-v-tbe-international-inc-et-al-trial-2015-04-07
Plaintiff counsel: David Lira, John Girardi, Marina Pacheco (Girardi & Keese LLP)
Defense counsel: Douglas Robinson, Janet Hickson (Shook Hardy & Bacon LLP)
Why you should watch: A California bus dealership dodged a potential $58 million wrongful death verdict in 2015, after a state court jury found a tour bus that rolled over while taking a group of Chinese tourists to visit the Grand Canyon was not defective due to lacking passenger seat belts.
More via the CVN News Blog: https://blog.cvn.com/bus-dealership-prevails-in-58m-wrongful-death-rollover-trial
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E-mail David Siegel at dsiegel@cvn.com