Columbus, OH – On Wednesday, The Buckeye Institute filed an amicus brief in Buffalo, NY v. Hyundai, calling on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to stop governments from misusing the courts to turn private businesses into ATMs to fund local government operations. 

“Manufacturers should not be liable for criminals’ misuse of the manufacturers’ product. That is textbook law,” said David C. Tryon, director of litigation at The Buckeye Institute. “The cities’ claim that Hyundai should have anticipated criminals circumventing commonly used anti-theft measures and that those criminals would take to social media to encourage others to engage in criminal activity is preposterous.” 

In its brief, The Buckeye Institute argues that local governments are abusing the courts and increasingly using litigation to subsidize government operations and achieve policy outcomes that might not be achievable through legislation, rulemaking, and enforcement. Local governments are not seeking to fix problems with these suits; they are seeking cash, typically targeting deep-pocketed unpopular companies or industries to fund the government’s efforts to remedy some societal ill. Buckeye argues that bypassing the political process in this manner is inconsistent with the separation of legislative and judicial power.

The Ohio cities of Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, and Parma joined Buffalo and 12 other cities as plaintiffs in the case.

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