The Federal government recently released the findings of the NASA-led study of Toyota's electronic throttle control system as a potential cause of the alleged sudden and unintended acceleration of Toyota and Lexus vehicles. In short, the study found no evidence of any electronic defect that would cause any sudden or unintended acceleration. But what exactly does it mean for Toyota, for the MDL cases, and for the pending State Court cases? Without a doubt it is a good thing for Toyota, as the study was unbiased and run by some of the best and brightest engineers there are. The proof of an electronic defect as a cause of an accident was going to be a nightmare anyway, as showing the existence of a given set of electrical circumstances at any point in time would have been difficult, to say the least. But getting this study out is a big break for Toyota because it takes some of the "mystery" out of the scenario, and in essence leaves the situation as one of proving/disproving mechanical defects (floor mats, accelerator pedals). And other manufacturers are also breathing a collective sigh of relief, as had the study come back with a specific finding of an electronic problem, those other manufacturers would have been next up on the block.
As for the cases themselves, the MDL cases aren't slated to start trial until April of 2013 at the earliest (with a few selected "test" cases). There will undoubtedly be a number of State court cases that come to trial before then, and that is where we'll see how the effect of this study truly plays out. It will be interesting to see if Plaintiff's attorneys can come up with a way to combat the Federal study (most assuredly they will try). The guess here is that the study will cause earlier (and probably lower, on the whole) settlement of more of those cases, though some will certainly come to trial regardless. The practical effect of the study will then be left in large part to the discretion of the various State court judges in charge of whichever of those cases come to trial.