Overview
On December 11, 2020, the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota granted Mercedes-Benz USA’s motion for judgment on the pleadings in Feldmann Imports Inc. v. Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC, 2020 WL 7310930, Case No. 20-cv-0750 (WMW/KMM) (D. Minn. Dec. 11, 2020). The $2M lawsuit centered around Mercedes-Benz USA’s denial of a warranty parts rate increase request by Feldmann Imports Inc. (“Feldmann”), a Bloomington, Minnesota dealership. The Court found that Feldmann’s Minnesota statutory claim that Mercedes-Benz USA improperly denied the request and failed to pay “retail rates” was untimely, and the Court further rejected Feldmann’s attempt to pursue the claim under other legal theories.
Barack Ferrazzano served as lead counsel to Mercedes-Benz USA. Our legal team was led by Motor Vehicle and Litigation Groups partner Matthew F. Singer, along with associate David B. Lurie, and partner Nicholas H. Callahan.
Warranty labor and parts reimbursement remains an active and contentious area in motor vehicle law. Dealerships often seek warranty rate increases from motor vehicle manufacturers, which can lead to millions of dollars in excess warranty reimbursement costs to OEMs. Barack Ferrazzano is at the forefront in protecting the rights of OEMs when faced with these requests, either through litigation, as in the case of Feldmann, through negotiation of creative solutions, or through the design of programs that mitigate warranty costs on an ongoing basis. Click on the link below to read the Court’s ruling.
