Elon Musk's Tesla Loses Bid To Dismiss Fatal Crash Lawsuit, Trial Set for July

Elon Musk‘s Tesla Inc. TSLA failed to dismiss a lawsuit over a fatal car crash involving its Model S. The judge’s decision paves the way for a potential trial.

What Happened: A federal judge in Miami, Beth Bloom, ruled that the estate of Naibel Benavides Leon and her former boyfriend, Dillon Angulo, can proceed with their claims against Tesla for design defects and failure to warn, according to a report by Reuters on Friday.

The lawsuit is related to an April 2019 incident where a Tesla Model S, equipped with Autopilot, crashed into the victims’ parked Chevrolet Tahoe in Key Largo, Florida.

The judge’s decision also allows the plaintiffs to seek punitive damages. The trial is scheduled for July 14.

Why It Matters: Tesla, based in Austin, Texas, has long been under scrutiny for the safety of its self-driving technology. The company has repeatedly emphasized that its autopilot features are meant for “fully attentive” drivers and do not make its vehicles autonomous.

Earlier this month, Tesla faced safety questions from regulators as it prepared to launch its Robotaxi service in Austin, Texas. The regulators were particularly concerned about the performance of Tesla’s self-driving technology in challenging weather conditions.

In a separate incident, a wrongful death lawsuit was filed against Tesla in New Jersey over a 2024 crash involving a Model S that claimed three lives. The lawsuit alleges that the crash was due to the car’s “defective and unreasonably dangerous design.”

Price in Action: Tesla closed at $323.63, down 0.66% for the day. A slight dip of 0.28% was seen in after-hours trading, amounting to $322.71, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Benzinga's Edge Stock Rankings indicates Tesla stock has Momentum in the 78th percentile. Find out the stock value of other automotive companies.