The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals refused to reconsider its March opinion allowing a wrongful death suit to proceed against a company that manufactured a seat belt blamed in the death of man killed when his Mazda 3 ran off the road. The lawyers for Autoliv Japan Ltd., the company that manufactured the seat belt, had asked the appeals court to certify a question to the Georgia Supreme Court as to whether Georgia's product liability law allowed the makers to be held liable even if they were not “actively involved” in the devices' design or specifications. Judge William Duffey Jr. of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia ruled that it did not and threw the case out last year on summary judgment, but the appellate panel disagreed and revived two of three claims. Ruling that, although Georgia's defective product law does shield “mere product sellers” from liability, that provision “expressly does not apply to actual manufacturers such as Autoliv,” said the appellate panel of Judges Charles Wilson and Joel Dubina and Judge Richard Goldberg of the U.S. Court of International Trade, sitting by designation. Joining Autoliv in asking for reconsideration was the Motor and Equipment Manufacturers Association, whose amicus brief said the appeals panel opinion, if left standing, would upend decades of law protecting the suppliers of original equipment for automakers whose products meet the carmaker's specifications. “This court should avoid placing unjust, inefficient, and disproportionate burdens on vehicle parts manufacturers and suppliers, the nation's largest employer of manufacturing jobs, unless it is certain that its decision is based on a sound interpretation of Georgia law,” said the amicus brief provided a Marc Fleischaker, Donald McLean, Alison Anderson and Andrew Murad of Washington, D.C.'s Arent Fox. The case involves a single-car accident in 2013 when Micah Andrews' vehicle went off an interstate and hit a line of trees. Andrews was wearing his seat belt, but the air bag failed to deploy and his head hit the steering column. Andrews' widow, Jamie Andrews, initially sued Mazda, air bag-maker Bosch LLC and Autoliv. Bosch and Mazda settled, leaving only Autoliv. Andrews is represented by Butler Wooten & Peak partners Jim Butler and Tedra Cannella and Ballard & Feagle partners William Ballard and Gregory Feagle. “This was a seat belt that spooled out 17 inches. Mr. Andrews hit the steering wheel so hard you could see an impression of it in his head,” Cannella said. ”The idea that you could turn around and say the seat belt performed as it was designed and there was nothing wrong with it is absurd,” she said. “We're looking forward to trying the case and getting back before the court. We think this is one of those cases a jury will be very interested to hear.” Alston & Bird partner Doug Scribner, who represents Autoliv with senior associate Jenny Mendelsohn, was unavailable for comment.