Vans Aircraft is a large, successful kit plane manufacturer. More new home built Vans airplanes fly each year than new Cessnas (or probably any other current aviation company, for that matter).
Prior to Vans amazing success, it was common for kitplane companies to run very lean and turn the whole company over (or liquidate the assets and turn them over) in the event of a lawsuit, thus avoiding an expensive legal fight.
A Vans airplane was involved in a double fatality. Even though the NTSB determined the pilot to be doubly at fault, a $35 million lawsuit was allowed to proceed in the US. Vans had to provide a legal defense. The lawsuit was eventually dismissed, but doubtless Vans was out a lot of money, both the years of legal defense and bad PR.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-north-carolina-lion/lion-...
https://newsline.kitplanes.com/2015/10/20/vans-aircraft-sued...
https://newsline.kitplanes.com/2017/02/22/lawsuit-against-va...