Trials are anomalous these days, directed verdicts are a small subset of these rarities, and then reversal of a directed verdict on appeal, is that much more infrequent but so it was today for Minnesota lemon law lawyer, Todd Gadtke, in a case against Toyota in which Gadtke won over the Court of Appeals to his view that Hennepin County Judge Robert Blaeser erred in granting Toyota’s motion for a directed verdict (represented by Carrie Hund) at the close of plaintiffs’ case at trial.
Apparently, the Court and all counsel were in agreement that “noise alone cannot be a defect, except in an extreme case.” But plaintiffs “presented evidence that the noise was caused by the brake booster check valve,” the Court found, and “[t]his evidence is capable of persuading a reasonable jury that the [plaintiffs]’ 2007 Highlander did not ‘conform to all applicable express warranties.'” (citing Minn. Stat. § 325F.665, subd. 2).