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Category Archives: litigation
SEC Charges Mining Company Rio Tinto with Bribery
Ford Motor (NYSE: F) and Stellantis (NYSE: STLA) among other large international corporations have supply contracts or business relationships with the mining conglomerate involving electric vehicle battery materials. Whether this is a bum in the road or a longer-term impediment to EV advancement is an open and ongoing matter subject to debate in industrial and public policy sectors. Continue reading
SEC Charges Transportation Company Greenbrier for Failing to Disclose Executive Perks and Payments
The SEC’s orders find that Greenbrier and Furman violated negligence-based antifraud and proxy provisions of the federal securities laws and that Greenbrier and Furman also committed or caused reporting, books and records, and internal accounting controls violations of the federal securities laws. Without admitting or denying the SEC’s findings, in addition to penalties, Greenbrier and Furman agreed to cease-and-desist from future violations of the securities laws. Continue reading
Do No Harm – Center for Auto Safety Drafts AV Bill of Rights
Simply put the draft – covering a wide and formidable list of potential issues – says AVs should “Do no harm!” The draft is an ambitious attempt to learn from the more than a century of automobility and apply the knowledge at the outset of what is expected to be widespread AV use sometime in the, oh, next decade or three. Continue reading
Acura, Honda Takata Airbag Recall Upgraded to Do Not Drive
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, aka NHTSA, urges vehicle owners to immediately check to see if their vehicle has an open Takata air bag recall. If it does, owners need to contact their dealership or Acura/Honda customer service to schedule a FREE repair as soon as possible, as well as free towing or mobile repair. Free loaner and rental vehicles are also available, if needed. Continue reading
Death of the Diesel – EPA Fines Genesee & Wyoming Railroad Services
GWRSI estimates that the company will spend approximately $42 million to comply with the consent decree requirements which will reduce NOx emissions from its locomotives by approximately 469 tons per year and particulate matter emissions by 14 tons per year. As these things go, this appears to be an amiable settlement to AutoInformed. Continue reading
GE Engineer Sentenced for Economic Espionage Conspiracy
“This is a case of textbook economic espionage. Zheng exploited his position of trust, betrayed his employer and conspired with the government of China to steal innovative American technology,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “The Justice Department will hold accountable those who threaten our national security by conniving to steal valuable trade secrets on behalf of a foreign power.” Continue reading
NHTSA Verifies Additional Chrysler Takata Fatality
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) this morning verified another Takata rupture fatality, bringing the total of number of Takata fatalities confirmed this year to five. One person died in a recent crash in a 2010 Chrysler 300 where the Takata driver’s side air bag inflator ruptured sending shrapnel into the interior.
This brings the total of Takata fatalities to 24, and the third confirmed this year in a Fiat Chrysler sedan. Continue reading
SEC Charges Goldman Sachs for Ignoring ESG Investment Policies, Procedures
To make the charges go away, GSAM agreed to pay a $4 million penalty. AutoInformed notes with no insider knowledge of this matter whatsoever or holdings of Goldman products to the best of its knowledge, that this is a minor parking ticket. Could it be that the SEC was perhaps lagging in its regulatory duties under the previous administration, and is now using this as a public relations ploy as it plays catch-up monitoring such investments? Continue reading
Chinese Government Intelligence Officer Sentenced to Prison
Yanjun Xu, 42, was sentenced to 20 years in prison. According to court documents, Xu targeted American aviation companies, recruited employees to travel to China, and solicited their proprietary information, all on behalf of the government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The Justice Department and the FBI of course are involved in other grave national security matters that if indictments come won’t require extradition of the alleged offender and co-conspirators from Mir-a-Lago. Continue reading
CARB settles with FCA for $5.6M on Air Quality Violations
FCA cooperated with CARB to resolve all allegations of violating Motor Vehicle Pollution Control Devices regulations. FCA’s settlement includes a $2.8 million civil penalty that will go to CARB’s Air Pollution Control Fund, which provides funding for projects and research to improve California’s air quality. Continue reading
Russian Oligarch Oleg Vladimirovich Deripaska Indicted
It’s just another example of how treacherous the waters of global trade are for multinational corporations with implications for automobile businesses that operate under totalitarian governments. Continue reading
Posted in economy, litigation, mobility company, people
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, doj, fbi, Ken Zino, Merrick Garland, Ukraine Russian sanctions
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Atlantic Richfield to Finish Anaconda Smelter Cleanup
Decades of copper smelting activity at the town of Anaconda polluted the soils in yards, commercial and industrial areas, pastures and open spaces throughout the 300-square-mile Anaconda Site. This pollution has in turn contributed to the contamination of creeks and other surface waters at the Site, as well as of alluvial and bedrock ground water. The closure of smelting operations in 1980 left large volumes of smelter slag, flue dust and hazardous rock tailings that have had to be secured through a variety of remediation methods. Continue reading
FCA Emissions Fraud: Accountability or Accountancy?
Whether this accountable enough or not is subject to debate. Critics say that this is just cash register justice whereby wealthy corporations buy their way out of criminal trouble and recover the costs through ongoing operations. Defenders point to the amount – a $300M criminal penalty – along with the organizational probation where FCA will be monitored for its regulatory behaviors. There are also outstanding individual criminal cases.
Continue reading
Flo~Pro Performance Exhaust To Halt Sales of Defeat Devices
The complaint, filed simultaneously with the consent decree, alleges that the parts described below are “defeat devices” prohibited by the CAA. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that prior to its 2018 investigation, Flo~Pro manufactured or sold more than 100,000 aftermarket defeat devices in the United States per year. In early 2019, Flo~Pro suspended sales of the defeat devices in the United States in an effort to resolve this matter. The consent decree for this settlement was lodged in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas and will be open for public comments for a period of 30 days. Continue reading
Justice Sues to Block JetBlue’s Purchase of Spirit Airlines
“JetBlue’s proposed acquisition of Spirit eliminates a disruptive, low-cost option for millions of Americans. Whether they fly Spirit or not, travelers throughout the United States benefit from an independent Spirit because where Spirit competes, other airlines – including JetBlue – are forced to compete more vigorously by lowering fares, offering greater innovations, and delivering more consumer choice,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Doha Mekki of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “This transaction occurs against the backdrop of years of airline consolidation in the United States.” Continue reading →