The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a lower court’s decision granting class-action status to a lawsuit filed by Tesla owners in California. The owners allege Tesla misled consumers by claiming vehicles sold since 2016 had the hardware needed for full self-driving capabilities.
The appeals court said individual questions about what buyers saw before purchasing made the claims unsuitable for a single class action. Plaintiffs could not show that every class member had been exposed to the allegedly false statements on Tesla’s website.
The ruling is a procedural victory for Tesla, preventing the claims from proceeding as a consolidated case representing thousands of owners. The underlying false-advertising lawsuit remains pending, and individual plaintiffs can still pursue their claims.