Consumer Reports V. Suzuki

Suzuki Motor Corporation is suing Consumers Union, the publisher of Consumer Reports magazine, over its 1988 rating of the Suzuki Samurai as "not acceptable." Consumer Reports rating of the Samurai was based upon a driving course test, in which the publication found the risk of rollover to be unacceptable. Suzuki contends that the driving course was rigged, and that the Samurai was singled out for testing more rigorous than that given to other SUVs. Not so, says Consumers Union, who has fought a series of lawsuits filed by the Suzuki Motor Corporation since 1996. Suzuki, which makes numerous SUVs, contends that the "not acceptable" rating was not only unfair, but that it hurt sales of their SUVs overall. Consumers Union sees it as a First Amendment issue, its constitutional right as a publication in America. In May, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals cleared the suit to go to a jury trial in Santa Ana, CA. Meanwhile, Consumers Union has petitioned the Supreme Court to review the Ninth Circuit's decision, hoping to avoid a costly jury trial. Host Larry Mantle speaks with George F. Ball, managing counsel for American Suzuki Motor Corporation and Jim Guest, President of Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports magazine.