Shumate v. American Honda Motor Co. CA2/8
Richard Finley Shumate was involved in a multi-car collision and brought a products liability case against the distributor of his car, American Honda Motor Co., Inc. The case culminated in summary judgment for Honda. We affirm because Shumate failed to raise a triable issue of material fact on the key issue of defect.
The core facts are few. Shumate drove a Honda CR-V. In June 2015, he was at a standstill on the 405 freeway, about 18 feet behind a Chevrolet Equinox. While stopped, a BMW Z3 hit him from behind, pushing his car into the Equinox. Shumate sued and settled with the BMW driver.
In 2017, Shumate sued Honda and other companies claiming his airbag was defective and should have deployed when he struck the Equinox.
Years passed, the parties tried and failed to settle the case, and then Honda moved for summary judgment on the issues of defect and causation.
Honda supplied expert evidence about the airbag system.
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