San Diego – April 7, 2026 – Cooley secured a major litigation victory for Bell Textron, winning dismissal of all state law claims in a high-profile product liability case pending in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

District Judge John F. Murphy granted Bell’s motion to dismiss, ruling that federal law – specifically, the Death on the High Seas Act (DOHSA) – preempts the plaintiffs’ state law claims in their entirety.

The case arises from the 2023 crash of a US Air Force CV-22B Osprey off the coast of Japan, in which eight airmen tragically perished. The plaintiffs are the personal representatives of the decedents, who alleged various state law claims against several manufacturers of the Osprey and its components, including strict product liability, negligence and others. Judge Murphy’s ruling prevents those claims from going forward, instead requiring the plaintiffs to re-plead their claims under the federal DOHSA statute.

Bell Textron, manufacturer of the Huey, Cobra and a host of other iconic rotorcraft, is one of the most storied aircraft manufacturers in the world. It is a subsidiary of Textron, a New York Stock Exchange-listed American industrial conglomerate based in Providence, Rhode Island.

Read the order

The Cooley team advising Bell is led by partners William O’Connor and Koji Fukumura, and supported by associates Chip Harrison, Rachael Heller, Mike Tetreault and Harris McLeod.

The case is Boozer et al. v. Bell Textron, Inc. et al.

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