Court Upholds Large Award After 2019 Autopilot Collision

A federal judge in Miami has sustained a sizable civil judgment following a 2019 collision in Key Largo that left one person dead and another gravely injured.

At the center of the case: a Model S operating with a Tesla assisted-driving mode when the driver lost control and struck pedestrians beside a parked car.

Last year’s jury assigned partial blame to the automaker, and plaintiffs sought damages to cover losses tied to the death and permanent injury; the judge found the trial record more than supports that verdict.

Counsel for the victims emphasized that the vehicle’s automation features and how the company described them were pivotal in the court’s liability findings.

Tesla asked for a new trial or to have the judgment thrown out and its outside counsel pressed for steep reductions in the monetary awards during the post-trial phase.

Defense lawyers argued statutory caps and proportional limits should dramatically shrink the company’s exposure; the court declined to accept those arguments as a basis to disturb the prior decision.

The ruling arrives as Tesla ramps efforts toward commercial driverless services, even though rivals already operate at-scale robotaxi fleets in multiple countries.

Company plans for broad deployment of driverless vehicles in the U.S. will now face heightened legal scrutiny and potential downstream costs tied to civil liability precedents.

Plaintiffs’ attorneys framed the outcome as validation that product claims and system behaviors can be actionable when they contribute to severe harm.

Outside observers note the case could shape insurance, engineering priorities, and the messaging companies use when marketing advanced driver assistance technologies.

Expect this decision to be cited in future suits and regulatory discussions, as courts and agencies weigh where responsibility lies when human drivers rely on semi-automated systems.