Hyundai Motor Co. v. Alvarado

in which GONZALEZ, BAKER, ABBOTT and HANKINSON, Justices, join.

Congress passed the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966 “to reduce traffic accidents and deaths and injuries to persons resulting from traffic accidents.” 15 U.S.C. § 13811 (recodified at 49 U.S.C. § 30101). The issue before us is whether the Act and its implementing regulations preempt common-law claims asserting that a vehicle’s passenger restraint system was defectively designed because the manufacturer failed to install lap belts. The court of appeals concluded that these claims were not preempted. 908 S.W.2d…