The Graves Amendment: Challenges, Interpretations and Answers

The Graves Amendment: Challenges, Interpretations and Answers

Co-Author, Auto Rental News

"Aug. 10, 2005 will go down in history as one of the most significant dates in the vehicle rental industry. On that day, President George W. Bush signed into law a bill popularly known as the ‘highway bill.’ The legislation contained a section, known as the Graves Amendment, which effectively bars all states from forcing vicarious liability on rental and leasing companies.”

When Michael LaPlaca penned those words for the Sept/Oct 2005 issue of Auto Rental News (“What Does the End of Vicarious Liability Mean?”), the impact of the Graves Amendment was only beginning to develop, and there were questions as to the interpretation of the specifics of the law.