Nature of the Case
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Facts
The vehicle at issue was a 1985 Chevrolet pickup. It was originally designed, tested, manufactured, and distributed by General Motors (D). Darrell Byrd purchased the pickup in or about February 1995 from a used car dealer in North Carolina. Darrell supplied a North Carolina address. The 1985 Chevrolet pickup truck was designed, tested, manufactured, and distributed by General Motors. The vehicle had fuel tanks mounted outside the frame rail. On December 22, 1997, Darrell Byrd was driving with his family in the truck from their home near Fortine, Montana, where Darrell Byrd was employed and where Timothy and Samuel Byrd attended school. The purpose of the trip was to spend Christmas vacation with family in North Carolina. The Byrds were domiciled in Montana before and at the time of the 1997 accident. The wreck and fire which form the basis of this action occurred on December 22, 1997, on Interstate 70 near Russell, Kansas, a 1997 International semi-tractor trailer driven by Betty J. Kendall collided with the truck. Darrell, Angela, and Timothy Byrd died. Samuel Byrd sustained personal injuries that required emergency treatment and hospitalization. Timothy was 13 years of age at the time of his death. Samuel Byrd was 11. Alvin Phillips (P) is the legal guardian of Samuel and the personal representative of the estates of Angela Byrd, Darrell Byrd, and Timothy Byrd. Alvin resides in Newton, North Carolina. Samuel Byrd presently resides in North Carolina. Probate proceedings for the Estates of Timothy, Angela, and Darrell Byrd are filed with and pending in the Montana Nineteenth Judicial District Court, Lincoln County, Montana. P sued in product liability for negligence and strict liability. D denies all liability. The parties disagree about the substantive law that should be applied to this case. Montana does not have a statutory provision governing choice of law nor has this Court reached a choice of law issue in a case involving conflicting tort rules. Federal judges have applied the 'most significant relationship' test of the Restatement (Second) of Conflict of Laws. The federal court certified 4 questions; the first of which was (1) In a personal injury/product liability/wrongful death action, where there is a potential conflict of laws, will Montana follow the Restatement (Second) of Conflict of Laws, including the 'most significant relationship' test set forth in §§ 146 and 6?
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