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CASES & INVESTIGATIONS |
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GENERAL INFORMATION |
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| On February 15,
2002, The Chrysler Group, a unit of DaimlerChrysler
Corporation, announced the recall of 1.6 million
Jeep Grand Cherokee sport-utility vehicles produced
from model year 1993 through 1998. Prior to announcing the
recall of these Jeeps, it was alleged in lawsuits, including
a suit filed by Lieff Cabraser, that the Jeep
Grand Cherokee was defectively designed because
the vehicle could shift suddenly from park into
reverse, even when the engine was not running. |
| Jeep Grand Cherokee
SUVs that are not fixed may appear to be in
park. However, a hidden internal shaft lever
within the transmission can actually land on
a flat space between reverse and park, leaving
the car in hydraulic neutral. From this spot,
referred to as "false park mode," slight
vibrations or movements can allegedly cause
the Jeep's lever to slip into reverse gear
and the Jeep to move. |
| For Jeeps produced from 1993 through 1998 that have not been repaired under the recall, the shift from park to reverse could occur when the Jeep's motor is running or shut off. A door slamming, or even an air conditioner cycling, could cause the shifter to slip and move the vehicle into reverse. |
| According to press reports, the rate of park to reverse complaints for Jeep Grand Cherokees was more than five times greater than for any similar SUV made by a different company. Prior to the recall, more than 860 people complained to the government or to DaimlerChrysler about "inadvertent rollway in reverse" incidents involving Jeep Grand Cherokees, which were blamed for at least 359 crashes, 184 injuries and five deaths. |
| In March 2007, Lieff
Cabraser partners Robert J. Nelson and Scott P. Nealey served as lead trial counsel in a five week trial and obtained a $55.2
million verdict for the family of a young father killed due to the park-to-reverse
defect with a 1991 Dodge Dakota pickup truck ($5.2 million in compensatory damages and 50 million in punitive damages). Lieff Cabraser has handled and settled numerous park-to-reverse injury cases in the last five years, yet the Mraz case was the first trial regarding this defect in a number of years. A "park
to reverse" defect is found in vehicles in which it is possible
for drivers to place the vehicle's automatic transmission shift selector into a
position between park and reverse during normal vehicle operations. This
shift position is also referred to as "false park" or "illusory park." |
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| Lieff
Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein,
LLP represents persons injured
in vehicle accidents. Click
here to submit your case. |
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Transmission Recall Notices from DaimlerChrysler
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| Park-to-Reverse Case Documents
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Top Park-to-Reverse News Articles and Press Reports
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| DaimlerChrysler has agreed to modify the 1993 to 1998 Jeep Grand Cherokees by installing a secondary detent system. Please call DaimlerChrysler at 1-800-853-1403 or visit your nearest Jeep dealer. |
| Lieff Cabraser represents
Jeep Grand Cherokee owners and others injured
in accidents allegedly caused by the vehicle
unexpectedly moving into reverse. |
| If
you or a family member have suffered any
injury due to a Jeep Grand Cherokee or a
Grand Wagoneer unexpectedly shifting into
reverse, or in a rollover accident involving
the Jeep Grand Cherokee, and would like to
learn more about your legal rights and remedies,
please click
here to contact an attorney at Lieff
Cabraser. |
| Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein,
LLP, is a national law firm of over 50 lawyers with offices in San Francisco,
New York and Nashville. Our attorneys are recognized
for the successful prosecution of lawsuits involving deaths, personal injuries
and property damage due to defective products, including in the field of vehicle
safety. |
| In 2007, in the case
of Mraz
v. DaimlerChrysler, Lieff Cabraser
attorneys, with local co-counsel, obtained
the fourth largest verdict in California for
the year. At trial, plaintiffs showed that
a defective
transmission was responsible for making
a Dodge Dakota pickup shift into reverse and
run over Richard Mraz. |
| Currently, we are
prosecuting personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits involving cars, vans,
pickup trucks, SUVs, the Yamaha Rhino and other
vehicles. To learn more about the firm, click
here. |
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There
is no charge or obligation
for our
review of your case. |
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We
have a nationwide
team of experienced auto
defect and car accident
lawyers assigned
to our vehicle injury
cases. |
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We
have retained leading
national car crash
and auto defect experts. |
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We
have on staff a team
of
legal assistants, investigators
and nurses to assist
in the prosecution
of the claims of our
clients. |
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We
provide individual
attentive service.
Learn
more about our firm. |
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| The issue of Park-to-Reverse is one that is described in many different ways both in lawsuits and in how people commonly refer to the issue. Such terms and phrases include: park to reverse, unintentional rearward movement, unintended rearward movement, unintentional reverse, unintended reverse, unintentional acceleration, unintended acceleration, powered reverse, failure to hold in park, slipped gear, inadvertant movement, inadvertant rearward movement, jumped into reverse, kicked into reverse, slipped into reverse, change gear, changed gear, back over, backed over, roll backwards, lurched backwards, roll back, rolled back, rearward runaway, accidental shift, shift alone, shift suddently, shift into reverse, shift out of park, switch gears, went into reverse. |
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| Trademark Notice:
Vehicle Injuries.com is an electronic newsletter from Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein,
LLP, a national personal injury attorney | lawyer law firm. |
| Lieff Cabraser is not
affiliated in any way with any trademark owner. The use of any trademarks on
this site is for product identification and information purposes only. |
| About Lieff Cabraser:
Drivers and passengers injured in auto crashes and pickup truck and SUV rollover
accidents, or families of loved ones who died, may be eligible to file lawsuits
against other drivers at fault or against the manufacturer of their vehicle if
the accident was due to a safety defect. Safety defects can include a high risk
of rolling
over, tire tread
separation, seat
belt failures and other defects. Learn
more... |
| We have offices in San
Francisco, New York and Nashville.
Our car crash accident lawyers and auto accident attorneys have represented
clients in personal injury, auto accident, SUV rollover and vehicle safety defect
lawsuits across America, including persons living in Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas,
Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii,
Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland,
Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota,
Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma,
Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia,
Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, West Virginia and Wyoming. |
| Disclaimer: The
hiring of an auto accident lawyer is an important decision. Please read our attorney
advertising disclaimer. |
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| Copyright © 2008 Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein,
LLP |
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