Plaintiffs in multidistrict litigation against General Motors have filed a motion alleging that GM and its outside law firm, King & Spalding LLP, lied to the court, withheld discoverable documents, and committed “fraudulent litigation misconduct to hide evidence of the ignition switch defect.”
The motion to compel, filed in the U.S. District Court for or the Southern District of New York, asks that the presiding judge review communications between GM and King & Spalding concerning pre-recall investigations of the defect, communications with NHTSA, settlement of individual cases, and other matters connected to the ignition switch defect. The motion argues that the attorney-client privilege does not apply to these communications because the attorneys’ services were used to further a crime or fraud.
According to a Wall Street Journal article (subscription required), the plaintiffs allege that King & Spalding warned GM to reach confidential settlements in cases involving defective Chevrolet Cobalt ignition switches to conceal that the auto giant had known of the defect since 2004. GM has denied the allegations.
Sommers Schwartz’s Complex Litigation Group are among the attorneys representing the class of plaintiffs seeking damages from General Motors. For more information about the lawsuit and its underlying claims, please visit the “GM Recall Litigation” page on our website, and if you’ve been injured as a result of a defective ignition switch, please contact us right away to protect your right to compensation.