Wabash National Corporation filed SEC Form 8-K: Other Events
$WNC
Construction/Ag Equipment/Trucks
Industrials
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported) March 20, 2025
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Item 8.01 Other Events.
As previously disclosed in Wabash National Corporation’s (the “Company”) filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, on (1) October 6, 2020, the Company was named as a co-defendant in a lawsuit, Eileen Williams, Elizabeth Perkins, et al. v. Wabash National Corporation, et al. (the “Product Liability Matter”), filed in the Circuit Court of the City of St. Louis, Missouri (the “Circuit Court”), (2) September 5, 2024, a jury awarded compensatory damages of $12.0 million and punitive damages of $450 million against the Company in the Product Liability Matter, and (3) November 22, 2024, applying an offset related to the plaintiff’s settlement with a separate defendant, the Circuit Court entered judgment in the Product Liability Matter consisting of compensatory damages of $11.5 million and punitive damages of $450 million. The Product Liability Matter related to a 2019 motor vehicle accident in which a passenger vehicle with an unobstructed view struck the back of a nearly stopped 2004 Wabash trailer that was operated by co-defendant GDS Express Inc. at the time of the accident. The evidence was undisputed that the trailer fully complied with all applicable regulations.
On March 20, 2025, the Circuit Court determined that the punitive damage award in the Product Liability Matter did not comport with the Company’s constitutional rights. Accordingly, the Circuit Court ordered the punitive damages award reduced to $108 million with the compensatory damages award remaining at $11.5 million (collectively, the “Adjusted Award”).
The Company believes both that the Adjusted Award remains abnormally high and the verdict is not supported by the facts or the law. Among other things, and despite precedent to the contrary, the jury was prevented from hearing critical evidence in the case, including that the driver’s blood alcohol level was over the legal limit at the time of the accident. The fact that neither the driver nor his passenger was wearing a seatbelt was also kept from the jury, even though plaintiffs argued both would have survived a 55-mile-per-hour collision had the vehicle not broken through the trailer’s rear impact guard. The Company continues to evaluate all available legal options.
The ultimate outcome of the Product Liability Matter cannot be predicted with any certainty and the Adjusted Award could materially and adversely affect the Company’s financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Forward-Looking Statements
This Current Report on Form 8-K (“Current Report”) contains certain forward-looking statements as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements convey the Company’s current expectations or forecasts of future events. All statements contained in this Current Report other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements include, among other things, all statements regarding the litigation described above, expectations regarding insurance coverage, the Company’s assessment of litigation and any actions the Company may take in response to the jury’s findings and trial court’s judgment, including post-trial motions and appeals, and the impact of litigation on the Company’s business and financial condition. These and the Company’s other forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those implied by the forward-looking statements. Without limitation, these risks and uncertainties include outcomes with respect to the Product Liability Matter and the Adjusted Award, the highly cyclical nature of our business, uncertain economic conditions including the possibility that customer demand may not meet our expectations, our backlog may not reflect future sales of our products, increased competition, reliance on certain customers and corporate partnerships, risks of customer pick-up delays, shortages and costs of raw materials including the impact of tariffs or other international trade developments, risks in implementing and sustaining improvements in the Company’s manufacturing operations and cost containment, dependence on industry trends and timing, supplier constraints, labor costs and availability, customer acceptance of and reactions to pricing changes, costs of indebtedness, and our ability to execute on our long-term strategic plan. Readers should review and consider the various disclosures made by the Company in this Current Report and in the Company’s reports to its stockholders and periodic reports on Forms 10-K and 10-Q.
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| WABASH NATIONAL CORPORATION | ||||||||
| Date: March 24, 2025 | By: | /s/ M. Kristin Glazner | ||||||
| M. Kristin Glazner | ||||||||
| Senior Vice President, Chief Administrative Officer, Corporate Secretary | ||||||||