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On May 15, 2025, a jury in the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina found for Honda in a product liability lawsuit with allegations about the crashworthiness of a model year 2020 Honda Odyssey minivan.
Plaintiffs were driving their Odyssey on Interstate 26 near Columbia in the late morning of June 16, 2021. The Odyssey was rear-ended by a sedan travelling at well above highway speeds. The Odyssey’s driver received a complete spinal cord injury, resulting in paraplegia.
Plaintiffs alleged the Odyssey’s driver’s seat failed to protect him during the crash, and its allegedly defective design led to his spinal cord injury. Honda’s attorneys showed the Odyssey was a well-designed vehicle with best-in-class crashworthiness, that the driver’s seat performed as designed to protect occupants, and the spinal cord injury was not caused by any defect in the vehicle.
After a nine-day trial, the eleven-member jury deliberated for ninety minutes before returning its unanimous verdict.
James M. Assey and Joan P. Assey v. American Honda Motor Co., Inc., United States District Court for the District of South Carolina, Judge Jacquelyn Austin presiding.
Plaintiffs were represented by Kevin Dean, Marlon Kimpson, and Lee Heath of Motley Rice LLC, and Luther Battiste of Johnson, Toal, and Battiste.
American Honda Motor Co., Inc. was represented by David Ayers and Briana O’Neil of Watkins & Eager PLLC, and Patrick Cleary of Bowman and Brooke LLP.