Business Litigation Report - January 2016

Legal Issues Raised by the Driverless Vehicle Revolution – PART 2 -

Part 1 of this article, published in the December 2015 Business Litigation Report, described emerging driverless vehicle technology and related patent and patent ligation issues. Part 2 continues this discussion with the potential impact of the driverless vehicle revolution on products liability law and data security.

Despite the potential of driverless and driver-assisted vehicles to dramatically reduce the frequency and severity of accidents, there is cause for concern that these vehicles may “increase the liability exposure of vehicle manufacturers.” Gary E. Marchant & Rachel A. Lindor, The Coming Collision Between Autonomous Vehicles and the Liability System, 52 Santa Clara L. Rev. 1321, 1149 (2012) (emphasis in original). As automation increasingly supplants the driver’s role in avoiding and mitigating accidents, liability for accidents can be expected to shift from drivers to automobile manufacturers. Thus, over the next 25 years, personal automobile insurance lines may shrink while commercial and products liability lines expand – perhaps dramatically.