Geier v. American Honda Motor Company | |
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Argued December 7, 1999 Decided May 22, 2000 | |
Full case name | Alexis Geier, et al., petitioners v. American Honda Motor Company, Inc., et al. |
Citations | 529 U.S. 861 (more) 120 S. Ct. 1913; 146 L. Ed. 2d 914; 2000 U.S. LEXIS 3425; 68 U.S.L.W. 4425; CCH Prod. Liab. Rep. ¶ 15,795; 2000 Cal. Daily Op. Service 5277; 2000 Daily Journal DAR 5277; 2000 Colo. J. C.A.R. 2826; 13 Fla. L. Weekly Fed. S 344 |
Case history | |
Prior | Dismissed, (D.D.C. 1997); affirmed, 166 F.3d 1236 (D.C. Cir. 1999); cert. granted, 527 U.S. 1063 (1999). |
Holding | |
The Federal standards for motor vehicle pre-empts tort lawsuits made under stricter state legislations. | |
Court membership | |
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Case opinions | |
Majority | Breyer, joined by Rehnquist, O'Connor, Scalia, and Kennedy |
Dissent | Stevens, joined by Souter, Thomas, Ginsburg |
Laws applied | |
National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act |
Geier v. American Honda Motor Company, 529 U.S. 861 (2000), was a United States Supreme Court case in which the Court held that a federal automobile safety standard pre-empted a stricter state rule.[1] The Court held that Alexis Geier, who suffered severe injuries in a 1987 Honda Accord, could not sue Honda for failing to install a driver-side airbag – a requirement under District of Columbia tort law but not Federal law – because Federal law pre-empted the District's rule.