California Court of Appeals Sides With Family of Mesothelioma Victim in Lawsuit Against Foreign Car Parts Companies

For purposes of this article, the mesothelioma victim in this case will be referred to as R.H.

In a recent court decision, the California Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the family of a mesothelioma victim in a lawsuit against two foreign car parts manufacturers. The ruling reversed an earlier trial court decision that had dismissed the companies from the case because of jurisdictional arguments. This decision allows the family to proceed with their legal claims against the two companies.

R.H. spent more than four decades working as an automobile mechanic. According to the lawsuit, which was filed by R.H.’s widow and adult children, during this time, R.H. was routinely exposed to asbestos-contaminated parts, particularly from Volkswagen and Toyota vehicles, which ultimately led to him developing malignant mesothelioma, a rare and aggressive form of cancer that can take decades to develop after initial asbestos exposure. According to the lawsuit, R.H. worked on Volkswagen cars at California dealerships from 1969 to 1976 and on Toyota vehicles between 1977 and 2009, which allegedly included Akebono Brake Co., Ltd., asbestos-contaminated components. The family accused the companies and others of strict product liability, negligence, and fraud.

In response to the claims, Volkswagen Germany (VWAG) and Akebono Brake sought to have the claims against them dropped because California courts did not have personal jurisdiction over them. The defendants pointed out that they are foreign entities not registered to do business in California and don’t have a principal place of business in California. The defendants claimed they lacked a direct enough connection to the state to justify being sued there.

Initially, the trial court sided with VWAG and Akebono Brake, granting their motions to quash the service of summonses to them. However, R.H.’s family refused to give up and filed an appeal with the California Court of Appeals. After reviewing the case, the Court of Appeals overturned the trial court’s decision. The appellate court ruled that under California law, courts can exercise jurisdiction over foreign entities if they have enough connection to California and if doing so is fair and reasonable. The appeals court found that VWAG and Akebono Brake had established such ties.

The Court of Appeals decided that VWAG and Akebono Brakes had decided to do business in California. The defendants did this by getting into contracts with importers or working through their local branches or partners to sell their products in the state. Because of this, the court concluded that exercising jurisdiction over the companies would not be unreasonable. The judges also said that the companies should have reasonably expected that they might be sued in California if their products caused harm there.

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