Vernon Hartline Granted Exclusion of Expert Testimony in Products Liability Case by U.S.D.C. for the Southern District of Texas

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas recently granted a Motion to Exclude Expert Testimony filed by Vernon Hartline on behalf of Volkswagen Group of America and Ducati North America. The case is a products liability case arising out of an accident involving a 2004 Ducati Monster 620 motorcycle in Houston, Texas. Ducati NA argued that the plaintiff’s expert, Byron Bloch, was unqualified and that his opinions were unreliable and not based on a sufficient scientific foundation. The court agreed, finding that the expert’s report was “speculative, conclusory, and fails to consider or disprove alternative causes.” The court granted an exclusionary order for the expert’s entire testimony.