First Yamaha Rhino lawsuit goes to trial
August 27th, 2009 by Kurt Niland
A lawsuit against Yamaha Motor Corporation and its subsidiaries, filed by the parents of a 13-year-old boy who was killed in a Rhino rollover accident, became the first of some 500 wrongful death and personal injury lawsuits to go to court in North America. Attorneys for Yamaha had tried to force the lawsuit into arbitration, but the Ninth Court of Appeals of Texas rejected its petition.
Forest “Eddie” Ray was killed on September 13, 2007 while operating a Yamaha Rhino near his home in Orange County, Texas, about 50 miles southeast of Houston. School was closed for the day as Hurricane Humberto approached the area, giving Ray some free time to enjoy the family ATV.
Reports say that Ray tried to maneuver the Rhino from grass onto a paved road when the rollover occurred. Ray sustained a fatal head injury when the vehicle rolled over onto him, crushing his head. His parents allege in the lawsuit that Yamaha made and marketed a product they knew to be defectively designed and prone to roll over. They also accuse Yamaha of skimping on costs by not installing vital safety features.
Earlier this year, Yamaha attorneys argued that the fine print on an agreement signed by the plaintiffs at their Yamaha dealership precluded the plantiffs’ right to take their grievances to trial. Court documents showed that the plaintiffs’ finance agreement from the dealership contained an arbitration clause.
The court denied Yamaha’s motion to force arbitration on June 30. An appeal was rejected on July 16. The trial opened on August 17 in the 163rd Judicial Court in Orange County, Texas before a jury of eight men and five women.