Trial Magazine

In September 2015, a 1945 amphibious military vehicle that was modified and remanufactured for tour operations by Ride the Ducks International (RTD International) and operated by Ride the Ducks of Seattle (RTD Seattle) was traveling northbound in the center lane of a North Seattle bridge during a guided tour of the city. At the same time, a motor coach was traveling southbound on the bridge. The RTD Seattle driver heard a loud bang and subsequently lost control of his vehicle, which then crossed the center line and struck the left side of the motor coach, penetrating the vehicle. The catastrophic collision injured 64 people, including students, five of whom were killed.

Forty plaintiffs—consisting of some of the bus passengers and duck riders who suffered injuries in the collision, including orthopedic, internal, and head injuries; the estate of a woman who died in the incident; and several people in other vehicles who were affected by the incident on the bridge—sued RTD Seattle, alleging breach of the duty of a common carrier. The plaintiffs also sued RTD International, alleging product construction defect, unsafe product design, lack of crashworthiness, and failure to warn. Among other things, the plaintiffs alleged that the front axle housings in the duck vehicles were dangerously defective and prone to failure but that RTD International failed to issue a recall. The plaintiffs also asserted that the CEO of RTD Seattle knew or should have known that most all of the service and maintenance bulletins issued by RTD International were not being performed because there were too few mechanics and too few resources during tourist season.

The jury returned a plaintiffs’ verdict for approximately $123 million.

Citation: Dinh Plaintiff Grp., No. 15-2-28905-5 SEA (Wash. Super. Ct. King Cnty. Feb. 7, 2019).

Plaintiff counsel: AAJ members Karen K. Koehler, Andrew Ackley, Garth L. Jones, Lisa V. Benedetti, Brad J. Moore, and Melanie Nguyen, all of Seattle.

Comment: Co-counsel in the case included Alex S. Chun, Kirkland, Wash; AAJ member Richard H. Benedetti and Jongwon Yi, both of Tacoma, Wash; Timothy Loranger, Los Angeles; AAJ member Matthew D. Dubin, AAJ member Arthur D. Leritz, AAJ member Melissa D. Carter, Patrick Kang, Charles Herrmann, Anthony Marsh, and AAJ member Chris Jackman, all of Seattle; Bradley Johnson, Doug Phillips, Brian H. Krikorian, and Wangjin Kim, all of Bellevue, Wash.; Daniel Williams, Portland, Ore.; Jeff Hightower, Dallas; David Rovang, Port Orchard, Wash.; and AAJ member Bojan Paolin Dekker, Amsterdam, Netherlands.