Lawyers at DBMS successfully litigate a wide variety of civil cases and argue appeals in some of the most challenging jurisdictions in the country.
State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company v. Defendant Automobile Manufacturer
Defendant Automobile Manufacturer
Outcome:Defense Verdict
Plaintiff, State Farm, brought this subrogation action against the defendant automobile manufacturer after a vehicle owned by State Farm’s insured caught fire in December 1996.
The vehicle sustained heavy damage and was deemed a total loss. State Farm alleged that the cause of the fire was faulty wiring in the dash panel
State Farm’s theory was that the wiring harness was allowed to chafe against a metal bracket in the center of the dashboard, and that, as a result, electrical arcing occurred between exposed harness wires and the metal bracket.
The defense argued that the vehicle was too badly damaged for anyone to identify a cause of the fire; that there was no evidence to support plaintiff’s chafing theory; and that no history of problems with the routing of wiring harnesses in this make and model of vehicle exists.
The defense also argued that a loose wiring harness would have caused a loud rattling in the dash panel but that there were no reported complaints of such rattling.
The jury deliberated approximately 3.5 hours before returning a verdict in favor of the defense.