TESLA INC. v. DEL. DIV. OF MOTOR VEHICLES

No. 375, 2022.

297 A.3d 625 (2023)

TESLA INC., Appellant, v. The DELAWARE DIVISION OF MOTOR VEHICLES, Appellee.

Supreme Court of Delaware.

Decided: May 15, 2023.


Attorney(s) appearing for the Case

Kelly E. Farnan, Esquire , Tyler E. Cragg, Esquire , RICHARDS, LAYTON & FINGER, P.A., Wilmington, Delaware, Felicia H. Ellsworth, Esquire , Sofie C. Brooks, Esquire , WILMER CUTLER PICKERING HALE AND DORR LLP, Boston, Massachusetts, Ari Holtzblatt, Esquire (argued), Leon T. Kenworthy, Esquire , WILMER CUTLER PICKERING HALE AND DORR LLP, Washington, D.C., for Appellant Tesla Inc.

George T. Lees III, Esquire (argued), DELAWARE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, Dover, Delaware, for Appellee The Delaware Division of Motor Vehicles.

Grayson P. Sundermeir, Esquire , FISH & RICHARDSON P.C., Wilmington, Delaware, Thomas H. Reger II, Esquire , FISH & RICHARDSON P.C., Dallas, Texas for Professors Roger D. Blair, Henry N. Butler, Steve Calandrillo, Nicholas Economides, Herbert Hovenkamp, Max Huffman, Kathryn Judge, Marina Lao, Mark A. Lemley, Stan Liebowitz, Geoffrey A. Manne, John O. McGinnis, Heather Payne, Michael Sykuta, Alexander Volokh, Samuel N. Weinstein, Lawrence J. White, and Joshua D. Wright as amici curiae in support of Appellant.

Before SEITZ, Chief Justice; VALIHURA, VAUGHN, TRAYNOR, Justices; and NEWELL, Judge, constituting the Court en Banc.


Tesla Inc. appeals from a Superior Court judgment upholding a Division of Motor Vehicles' ("DMV") decision denying Tesla's application for a new dealer license. The Superior Court agreed with the DMV Director that the Delaware Motor Vehicle Franchising Practices Act ("Franchise Act") prohibited Tesla, as a new motor vehicle...

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