Christopher J. Dalton Quoted in Law360 about BMW Battery Warranty Class Case

Christopher J. Dalton, Shareholder in Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney’s Litigation and Labor & Employment Sections, was quoted in a recent Law360 article regarding the firm’s client, BMW of North America, which is involved in a putative class action in New Jersey claiming that BMW marketed its warranty and service agreements deceptively, sold vehicles with batteries that failed to hold a charge and refused to replace the batteries under those agreements.

Dalton argued that the named plaintiff, John J. Morano, would not be able to prove through common evidence that each class member had been denied a battery wrongfully.

“That is the highly individualized inquiry that's going to prevent this class from ever being certified,” Dalton said.

Morano has brought claims of consumer fraud, breach of contract and breach of warranty, but Dalton argued Morano's fraud allegations fell short of the pleading standards for such claims.

“The complaint doesn't set forth the who, what, where, when and why with the required specificity,” he said.