Sasser vs. Ford Motor Company

The case of Sasser vs. Ford Motor Company was tried to a successful jury verdict on March 4, 2004 in the Circuit Court of Fulton County, Georgia.

In this case, Kelsey Sasser, who, at the time of trial, was 9 years of age, was awarded an actual damage judgment against Ford Motor Company in the amount of $33,000,000.00, and, during the punitive damage phase of the case, was awarded punitive damages of almost $14,000,000.00. This case involved a 2000 Lincoln LS vehicle, which had a defective rear seat which collapsed during the impact of an accident subjecting Kelsey Sasser to a permanent injury to her thoracic spine, which resulted in paraplegia. Ford Motor Company, represented by Don Dawson, decided to take this case to trial. As a result, the jury, in this case, returned an actual damage award, which was the highest actual damage award, to-date, for an injury case in Georgia.

Following the jury verdict, Ford Motor Company appealed this case to the Georgia Court of Appeals, which unanimously upheld the verdict. Ralph Chapman of Chapman, Lewis & Swan, along with the law firm of Scherffius, Ballard, Still and Ayers of Altanta, Georgia, represented the Plaintiff.