General Motors ignition switch suit judge denies documents request

By Caroline Salls

Pittsburgh, Nov. 25 – The judge in General Motors’ ongoing faulty ignition switch litigation denied a motion to order General Motors LLC (new GM) and counsel King & Spalding to produce documents under the crime-fraud exception to attorney-client communications and attorney work product, according to a news release from plaintiff counsel Hilliard Munoz Gonzales LLC.

“There can be no doubt that there is probable cause to believe that new GM committed a crime or fraud by concealing the ignition switch defect from its regulators and the general public,” Hilliard said in the release.

Hilliard said the court pointed out in its opinion that “The recent criminal charges filed against new GM indicate there is probable cause to so believe, and plaintiffs in this MDL may ultimately be able to prove that new GM committed egregious acts for which it should be held to account.

“We believed that this case and these facts supported the defeat of the privilege. The court disagreed.”

According to the release, the first case against GM will be tried in January.

“That verdict will determine what level of financial punishment should be assessed against this company for its conduct,” Hilliard said in the release.

General Motors is a Detroit-based automaker that filed for bankruptcy on June 1, 2009. The new General Motors emerged from Chapter 11 on July 10, 2009.

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