Attorney Joseph Lisoni Decries Ruling against Certification of Firestone Steeltex National Class Action; Outlines Future Actions.

Business Editors/Legal Writers

INDIO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 17, 2004

During a hearing held this morning in the Riverside Branch of the California Superior Court in Indio, CA, Judge Christopher J. Sheldon denied a motion, without prejudice, to certify a lawsuit against Bridgestone/Firestone, Inc. as a national class action. In making his ruling, the judge said plaintiffs' attorneys could renew the motion for class certification as well as present evidence of defects in the Steeltex tires. According to plaintiffs' attorneys, they did not present any evidence at this hearing as it was not required because case management order calls for the presentation of evidence only after the class action is certified.

The lawsuit was filed against the tire manufacturer on August 13, 2002, alleging that its Steeltex R4S, R4SII and A/T tire series had defects in design which have resulted in massive tread separations. The lawsuit further contended that these separations have led to accidents which have caused property damage, injuries and deaths.

Following is a statement from Joseph L. Lisoni of the Pasadena, CA-based law firm of Lisoni & Lisoni, who is the lead attorney handling the class action lawsuit:

"We are not pleased with the judge's ruling on our motion of certification. We are confident that we met all the criteria set forth in the law to qualify our lawsuit as a national class action and we feel the judge did not interpret the law properly. The only two issues before him today were whether the class was easily identifiable and was there a common question of law. We clearly demonstrated that each of these two requirements for certification was met. Each and every day that Steeltex tires are allowed on the nation's roads and highways, the public is at risk. Only a total recall of every one of the more than 30 million Steeltex tires on the road will protect their future safety and welfare.

"As we had advance notice of the judge's ruling on our motion of certification, it enabled us to plan and put in motion future actions that we will take to continue our quest to get these flawed tires off the road. Towards that end, in the very near future, we will take the following actions:

-- We will file with the California Superior Court a motion of

reconsideration for the certification of the national class

action and in doing so, as the judge requested, we will

provide him with the mountain of documentation and evidence

that we have compiled during our 20 months of investigation

into the Steeltex tire problem.

-- Subsequent to an agreement we had reached with Bridgestone

Corporation, Inc. of Japan prior to today's ruling, we will

shortly file a national class action lawsuit against this

corporation.

-- We will immediately begin the process of filing class action

lawsuits in individual states in America, beginning with

California, Colorado, Arizona, Florida, Texas and New Mexico 

as well as the District of Columbia.

-- On April 2, we will file a petition with the National Highway

Traffic Safety Administration to reopen its investigation of

the Steeltex tires targeted to alleged defects which our

investigation has found to have caused damage to tires on

ambulances and emergency vehicles in 33 states.

"This `war' against the Steeltex tire has reached a new plateau and the enemy is on the run. With the recently announced recall of 490,000 Steeltex tires by Bridgestone/Firestone, its long professed claims of the purity of the Steeltex tire have been permanently shattered. Unless and until they do the `right thing' and recall all the tires, we will pursue this litigation to a successful conclusion."

-- Joseph L. Lisoni, Esq.