Ford Motor Co. Ducks Major Punitive Damages in SUV Rollover Suit

Ford Motor Co. may have been spared a monster punitive damages verdict in an SUV rollover case because its lawyer was allowed to tell jurors about the carmaker's dire financial straits and mass layoffs. A New Jersey jury on Wednesday awarded only $42,500 in punitives, despite having found Ford liable for $10.6 million in compensatory damages to a paralyzed driver. The suit claimed that the 2000 accident was caused by a defective throttle design in the 1997 Ford Explorer.

This article requires premium access

This article requires premium access to Law.com. Please sign in or subscribe to read the full text.