Nissan Sheds Class Status in Brake System Defect Suit on Appeal

A Tennessee federal district court erred when it certified 10 statewide classes in a suit alleging that Nissan North America Inc. equipped cars with flawed automatic electronic braking systems, the Sixth Circuit ruled Friday.

Individuals from 10 states sued Nissan in 2020 alleging that it sold defective cars because they contained braking systems that activated at improper times. The district court agreed with the plaintiffs that a single radar problem is at the center of each state-law claim, and certified the classes.

But the classes don’t satisfy material requirements for certification, Chief Judge Jeffrey S. Sutton of the US Court ...