Australian judge floats giving court-appointed expert access to Tesla's engineering systems

An Australian Federal Court judge has proposed ordering Tesla to grant court-appointed independent experts direct access to its internal engineering platforms to resolve an ongoing discovery deadlock in a class action lawsuit. The legal action, originally filed in February 2025 on behalf of roughly 10,000 Tesla owners, alleges that Model 3 and Model Y vehicles suffer from phantom braking issues and that advertised self-driving capabilities and battery driving ranges were overstated. Justice Tom Thawley suggested appointing an expert to circumvent delays, noting it would provide full technical oversight despite potential objections over commercial confidentiality. Tesla argued that it has acted in good faith by disclosing thousands of files, explaining that its live engineering environments do not produce traditional point-in-time documentation. Tesla's legal counsel emphasized the proprietary nature of its systems, with the court scheduled to reconvene on November 12 to deliberate on the appointment order. This development introduces potential scrutiny into Tesla's proprietary autonomous driving software architecture.