Tesla has had another legal victory in China, as a court in Shanghai has ordered a woman to apologize and pay damages for staging a protest at the 2021 Shanghai Auto Show. This ruling comes after a three year long legal battle that drew widespread media attention, and is the second ruling in favour of Tesla relating to brake failure claims.
The ordeal began back in 2021 when the defendant, Ms. Zhang, climbed on the roof of a Tesla Model 3 at the Shanghai Auto Show, wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with “Brake Failure.” She claimed that the brakes in her father’s Tesla had malfunctioned, leading to a serious accident.
However, subsequent investigations by police found that the accident involving Ms. Zhang’s father was primarily due to his failure to maintain a safe driving distance, rather than any mechanical faults with the car. Despite these findings, Ms. Zhang continued to assert that the vehicle’s brakes were defective, a claim she admitted during the trial lacked objective evidence.
The court’s decision to side with Tesla hinged on Ms. Zhang’s failure to produce any concrete proof supporting her allegations. Furthermore, she did not seek a judicial appraisal to verify her claims about the vehicle’s brake system, reports CaixinGlobal.
This lack of evidence, coupled with her decision to stage the protest on a media day specifically designed to attract coverage, led the court to conclude that her actions were not only baseless but also intended to harm Tesla’s reputation.
According to the court’s ruling, Zhang must issue a public apology and pay Tesla ¥172,275 (C$33,100/US$23,800) in damages.
Zhang wasn’t the only protestor at the Shanghai Auto Show on that day back in 2021, and also not the only protestor to face a lawsuit from Tesla and lose. Last year Ms. Li was found liable for infringement of reputation, and like Zhang had to issue a public apology to Tesla and pay damages.
