One of the best parts of being a trial lawyer is the ability to bring about
positive safety changes which can save lives.
Product defect
cases are probably some of the best cases to influence change and make
our world a little safer. Most people have heard that General Motors is
in a lot of hot water for hiding critical information related to ignition
problems with its vehicles. General Motors knew of at least 13 deaths
tied to the failure of ignition switches, which caused cars to randomly
lose engine power and deactive airbags. In spite of this knowledge, General
Motors went out of its way to hid this information from the public, putting
company profits ahead of safety. This article from the New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/18/business/inquiries-at-gm-are-said-to-focus-on-its-legal-unit.html?emc=edit_th_20140518&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=53795962&_r=1
does a nice job of addressing how the legal department at General Motors
was largely behind this coverup. We have litigated a lot of product liability
cases over the years, and I can tell you that it is amazing how companies
will go to great lengths to hide clearly relevant and discoverable information
from the injured victims and public. Whatever General Motors ends up paying
to resolve all of these claims, it will surely pale in comparison to all
of the lives that were unecessarily lost because of this company's greed.
