Law360 (June 12, 2020, 6:50 PM EDT) — The Ninth Circuit said Friday that a California magistrate judge improperly overturned a jury’s $500,000 punitive damages award for a couple who accused Fiat Chrysler of selling them a defective 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee.

A three-judge panel of the appeals court restored a jury’s October 2018 finding that Carl and Cathy Cieslikowski had enough evidence backing their allegations Fiat Chrysler committed fraud because at the time it sold the Jeep to the Cieslikowskis — December 2011 — the company already knew about a faulty component in the vehicle that could cause electrical problems.

However, the case heads back to the district court…