Buckeye Reporter

The Buckeye Institute has filed an amicus brief in the case of Buffalo, NY v. Hyundai, urging the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to prevent governments from using private businesses as sources of funding for local government operations.

"Manufacturers should not be liable for criminals’ misuse of the manufacturers’ product. That is textbook law," stated 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 contends that local governments are misusing the courts by increasingly relying on litigation to subsidize their operations and achieve policy goals unattainable through traditional legislative processes. According to the institute, these lawsuits are not aimed at resolving problems but rather at securing financial resources by targeting wealthy and often unpopular companies or industries.

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

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