Ford, lawyer both claim victory

Rubber & Plastics News, February, 2002 by Miles Moore

Ford Motor Co. and a Los Angeles plaintiff's attorney are disputing publicly the significance of the verdict in a wrongful injury case in Barstow Superior Court.

The case-which involved the catastrophic injuries of an Orange County, Calif., couple when their Ford Explorer rolled over-was the first in which a jury ruled that the basic design of the Explorer is faulty, according to attorney Garo Mardirossian of Mardirossian & Associates.

The plaintiffs settled for $14.9 million on Feb. 5, before the penalty phase of the trial.

Ford said Mardirossian's statement is a gross misinterpretation of the jury verdict, and the Explorer's design was exonerated. Ford, the company said, wasn't found liable in the verdict, but rather a Ford dealership the jury...