Cases
Representative Cases: Ed Stewart represents automakers
other manufacturers in product liability, class action,
complex commercial litigation. He has tried 27 cases
three arbitrations to verdict or decision in 13 states.
Serving as regional trial counsel to a leading national shipping company.
Walker v. Ford Motor Co., 2017 CO 102 - Won a significant victory for Ford Motor Co. in the Colorado Supreme Court. The case reestablishes that the risk-benefit test is the appropriate test for juries to assess whether a product has been defectively designed. The Court also held that a manufacturer could not be negligent if it designed a reasonably safe product.
Magill v. Ford Motor Co. (Colo. Sup. Ct. 2016) - Won a Rule 21 petition (an extraordinary remedy ) for Ford to the Colorado Supreme Court in a case involving general jurisdiction
venue claims. The opinion makes it harder for companies with no connection to Colorado to be sued in the state.
Dukes v. Michelin (Nineteenth Jud. Cir. St. Lucie Cnty. FL 2016) - Won a complete defense jury verdict for Michelin following a nine-week trial in Florida in which the plaintiffs requested damages in excess of $80 million. WTO attorneys demonstrated that Michelin's tire was not defective, was well-designed
well-manufactured,
had been previously damaged during its service life. The jury found Michelin not liable for the accident.
Allen v. Michelin (Ariz. Sup. Ct. Mohave Cnty. 2015) - Won a unanimous defense verdict for Michelin North America following a three-week trial in Arizona state court. The plaintiff dem
ed $20 million in actual
punitive damages, claiming our client's tire separated
caused a rollover accident that resulted in severe injuries. Michelin was found not at fault on all claims.
Walker v. Ford Motor Co. (Colo. App. 2015) - Won reversal of a 2013 jury verdict against Ford Motor Co. in a case that alleged strict liability
negligence relating to a rear-end collision in a 1998 Ford Explorer. The Court of Appeals concluded that the application of consumer expectation as a st
alone test in Colorado's pattern jury instructions does not comply with Colorado law as established by the Colorado Supreme Court in Camacho v. Honda Motor Co. (1987).
Hoffman v. Ford (10th Cir. 2012) - Won Tenth Circuit reversal of a federal district court jury verdict favoring the plaintiff
secured a judgment in favor of Ford Motor Co. in a product liability case involving a rollover crash in which the plaintiff was rendered a quadriplegic.
Schanel v. Ford Motor Co. (Colo. Ct. App. 2012) - Defended the appeal to the Colorado Court of Appeals of a 2010 jury verdict that WTO won on behalf of Ford Motor Company in an electronic throttle product liability case.
WhiteWave Foods, Co. v. Northl
Organic Foods (Boulder Cnty. Dist. Ct. 2011) - Won a verdict in Boulder District Court of Colorado in favor of a food production company in a breach-of-contract action it brought against the sole shareholder
officer of an organic food production company.
Co-managed with one other law firm the response to requests from 418 dealers for arbitration relating to the bankruptcy of Chrysler Group LLC
following Chrysler's termination of those dealerships. WTO litigated 187 of these Section 747 arbitrations,
, as directed by Congress, resolved all of the litigation within seven months.
In re Ford Explorer Cases (Cal. Sacramento Cnty. Super. Ct. 2007) - Defended Ford Motor Co. in a four-month certified class action trial involving $2 billion in consumer fraud claims. On the day set for closing arguments, the plaintiffs agreed to a no-cash, coupon-based settlement for the California class
classes in three other states with pending parallel actions.
Successfully defended Ford in a fraud case when the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York dismissed the plaintiffs' various consumer fraud claims.
