CaseyGerry Partner Gayle M. Blatt Appointed to National Steering Committee Overseeing Airbag Litigation

Class Action Lawsuits Now Consolidated in Federal Court

SAN DIEGO (Feb.28, 2020) – A California federal judge has appointed leading San Diego plaintiffs’ attorney Gayle M. Blatt to the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee in the Multidistrict Litigation (MDL) In Re: ZF-TRW Airbag Control Units Products Liability Litigation. This litigation seeks justice for millions of car owners against airbag supplier ZF-TRW Automotive Holdings Corp. and numerous vehicle manufacturers, including Toyota, Honda, Hyundai, Mitsubishi, Kia and FCA. Plaintiffs allege these companies knowingly hid dangerous airbag defects in certain model-year cars from consumers.

Blatt, a CaseyGerry partner and chair of its complex litigation team, was appointed  by U.S. District Judge John A. Kronstadt, to serve on the committee which will help oversee the 25 class action lawsuits – involving more than 12 million vehicles – filed on behalf of car owners. Last summer, the cases were centralized in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California in In Re: ZF-TRW Airbag Control Units Products Liability Litigation, Case No. LA ML 19-02905 JAK (FFM).

According to the lawsuit, a defect causing electrical overstress in the airbag system can result in the failure of the airbags and the seatbelt pretensioners to deploy in a collision.

A previous defective airbag class action case against airbag manufacturer Takata Corp. and several automakers resulted in settlements valued at approximately $1.5 billion.

“I am honored by this appointment and to be working on this very important matter,” Blatt said. “Defective airbags put the public at risk, and I look forward to working with this leadership group of very talented attorneys to hold responsible companies accountable and bring the claims to a fair resolution.”

A long time CaseyGerry partner, Blatt has held numerous national leadership positions in multidistrict litigation, including in the massive Yahoo! data breach litigation, where she is the only California attorney to serve on the committee, litigation against Apple relating to alleged defects in certain iPhone models, litigation against Intel for alleged security flaws in its CPUs, Hydroxycut Marketing and Sales Practices Litigation and the Incretin Mimetics Product Liability Litigation.

Additionally, she has worked with CaseyGerry managing partner David S. Casey, Jr. on multiple cases including the Volkswagen diesel emissions scandal litigation, which settled for a historic $15 billion, and the Wells Fargo Collateral Protection Insurance Class Action Suit which settled for $393.5 million.

About CaseyGerry

Headquartered at 110 Laurel St. in the Banker’s Hill neighborhood of San Diego, CaseyGerry was established in 1947 and is the oldest plaintiffs’ law firm in San Diego. The firm’s attorneys practice in numerous areas, including serious personal injury, maritime, aviation, product liability, class action, mass torts and pharmaceutical litigation. For more information, visit www.caseygerry.com.