Volvo Cars of North America, Inc. v. Ricci

OPINION

By the Court,

Gibbons, L:

The United States District Court has certified two questions to this court concerning the admissibility of government and industry automobile safety standards in a strict products liability action based on design defect. We conclude that the questions are not amenable to certification under NRAP 5 because our answers could not in any sense “be determinative” of the federal action. Therefore, we decline to answer them.

FACTS

Respondent Patrick Ricci, who was driving his 1986 Volvo 740, was rendered a quadriplegic in a rollover accident. The roof over his head had ‘…