Various Claimants v Mercedes-Benz Group AG & Ors

Various Claimants v Mercedes-Benz Group AG & Ors

Type Approval, Mandatory Update, and Voluntary Update Decisions of the KBA are not binding on the English court or claimants in civil damages claims regarding the presence or absence of prohibited defeat devices, as their tenor does not extend to such determinations under German law as applied by civil courts;...

Source-derived case information.

Parties
Claimant: Various Claimants; Defendant: Mercedes-Benz Group AG & Others; Defendant: Volkswagen AG & Others; Defendant: Ford Motor Company & Others; Defendant: Nissan Motor Co Limited & Others
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
14 November 2024
Procedural Posture
Group Litigation Order (glo) Product Liability/consumer Protection / Judgment on Preliminary Issues Regarding Binding Effect of German KBA Decisions
Outcome
Preliminary issues determined in favour of the claimants (except for Recall Decisions).
Legal Topics
Type Approval, Defeat Devices, Emissions Regulation, Binding Effect of Foreign Administrative Acts, Effective Judicial Protection, Harmonisation of EU Law, Recall Decisions, Update Decisions
Product Liability Consumer Protection EU Law Administrative Law Type Approval Defeat Devices Emissions Regulation Binding Effect of Foreign Administrative Acts +4 more

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Summary, issues, holding and outcome

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Parties

Various Claimants

Claimant

Mercedes-Benz Group AG & Others

Defendant

Volkswagen AG & Others

Defendant

Ford Motor Company & Others

Defendant

Nissan Motor Co Limited & Others

Defendant

Procedural Posture

Group Litigation Order (glo) Product Liability/consumer Protection / Judgment on Preliminary Issues Regarding Binding Effect of German KBA Decisions

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether KBA Type Approval, Recall, Mandatory Update, and Voluntary Update Decisions are binding on the English court and/or claimants as non-addressees in civil litigation regarding presence or absence of prohibited defeat devices (PDDs)
  2. 2 Whether German court determinations on appeals from KBA decisions are binding on the English court and/or claimants as non-addressees

Ratio Decidendi

Type Approval, Mandatory Update, and Voluntary Update Decisions of the KBA are not binding on the English court or claimants in civil damages claims regarding the presence or absence of prohibited defeat devices, as their tenor does not extend to such determinations under German law as applied by civil courts; Recall Decisions are binding as to the existence of PDDs. Even if binding under German law, such decisions would not preclude private law claims in England due to principles of effective judicial protection and CJEU jurisprudence.

Court Disposition

Preliminary issues determined in favour of the claimants (except for Recall Decisions).

Orders

  • Type Approval, Mandatory Update, and Voluntary Update Decisions are not binding on the English court or claimants as to the presence or absence of PDDs.
  • Recall Decisions are binding as to the presence of PDDs.