The U.S. Supreme Court is asking the Biden administration to weigh in on a matter of great import to Volkswagen. The court is looking to answer the question of whether or not local governments in Florida and Utah can sue the automaker for damages stemming from 2015’s Dieselgate scandal.
The court is considering hearing an appeal from Volkswagen and Bosch following a ruling from a lower court, according to Reuters. That decision allowed local governments to hold the company liable under local laws and regulations that bar tampering with vehicle emissions controls.
The company will be eager to limit any further action against it since its settlement with the EPA amounted to more than $20 billion. The settlement followed VW’s admission in 2015 that it had installed devices designed to cheat emissions tests.
The local governments argue that, in deceiving the EPA, VW also violated local laws. And if they succeed, it could mean more big penalties against the embattled automaker.
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Volkswagen and Bosch argue that, under the U.S. Clean Air Act, only the federal government can pursue such claims. To succeed, its appeal to overturn a ruling made by the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeal in 2020 will have to work.
In that ruling, the court decided that the Clean Air Act did not stop local efforts to impose liability over vehicles that were tampered with after being sold. That’s a problem for VW, because the automaker installed software updates after vehicles were sold to further refine emissions controls.
Along with VW and Bosch, the decision will be of great interest to Stellantis, whose North American unit, formerly known as FCA, is facing similar claims over its own diesel scandal.
