Brownfield v. Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC

MEMORANDUM

Kyle Brownfield (Brownfield) appeals from the judgment entered' in favor of Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC (Jaguar) following a jury trial of Brownfield’s case alleging that Jaguar violated the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, also known as California’s lemon law. See Cal. Civ.Code § 1790 et seq.

This case turned on whether Jaguar was given a reasonable number of opportunities to repair Brownfield’s vehicle. The parties submitted conflicting jury instructions to explain “reasonable opportunities” as used in the Act, and the district court modified the standard jury instruction (CACI 3202) to include the following, additional paragraph:

Brownfield takes issue with the use of the phrase “any particular problem” in the instruction. However, the instruction “fairly and adequately cover[ed] the issues presented, correctly state[d] the law, and [was] not ... misleading.” Peralta v. Dillard, 744 F.3d 1076, 1082 (9th Cir.2014) (en banc). As the case chiefly relied upon by Brownfield demonstrates, and as recognized by Brownfield during oral argument, California Song-Beverly cases use the terms “problem” and “defect” interchangeably. See, e.g., Robertson v. Fleetwood…