Williamson v. Mazda Motor of America, Inc. — Thomas, J., Concurring

Summary

Justice Thomas concurs in the judgment, holding that the plain‑text saving clause of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act unequivocally preserves state common‑law tort actions and therefore pre‑empts no such claim. He rejects the majority’s purposes‑and‑objectives pre‑emption analysis as extratextual and constitutionally improper, emphasizing that pre‑emption must be grounded in the statutory text itself. The opinion notes that the case was decided in favor of the Williamsons, allowing their state tort suit to proceed.