Judge Orders GM to Turn Over Recall Records
CORPUS CHRISTI, TX (March 17, 2014) In a victory for victims allegedly injured by GM vehicles with defective ignitions, a Texas judge has ordered General Motors to turn over all records pertaining to the defective vehicles by March 24, 2014 (Temporary Restraining Order filed in Nueces County Court at Law No. 4 on March 17, 2014. Cause No. 2014, CCV-60443-4).
The following requests were made in the TRO, filed by Thomas J. Henry:
“Plaintiffs request that the Court grant their request for an expedited discovery process and require Defendants to produce their response to the specific discovery requests on or before March 24, 2014. Specifically, Plaintiffs request that GM be ordered to produce all documents exchanged in state court litigation concerning ignition switch failure and/or product recall.” -Par. 54. Application for Temporary Restraining Order
The judge granted the plaintiff’s request – as outlined in the signed order (below):
“It is further ordered that Defendant comply with the discovery request set out in section 7 of Plaintiffs’ First Amended Original Petition found in paragraphs 54, 55, and 56.” – Excerpt from Temporary Restraining Order and Order Setting Hearing for Temporary Injunction, signed by Judge Klager, Nueces County Court at Law No. 4
The requested records will help attorneys gather more details about defects in the recalled vehicles. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration made a similar request for records back on March 5 – giving GM a response deadline of April 3, 2014.
Due to the swift and aggressive move made by lead attorney Thomas J. Henry, accident victims may soon have access to many of the records already requested by the government.
“This is about protecting the public,” Thomas J. Henry stated, after securing the court order.
“We can’t just stand around knowing people have allegedly been seriously injured or have died as a result of these vehicles. GM needs to turn over these documents, all documents related to these vehicles, immediately.”
“My law firm has taken numerous calls from families from across the country looking for answers. Families who lost loved ones back in 2004, 2005, 2006… in accidents with vehicles affected by the recall. These families never got answers from GM, now they are looking to me. We will have more answers when this court order is complied with.”
GM recalled 1.6 million vehicles in February due to defective ignition switches which can cause vehicles to shut off and prevent airbags from deploying. Recalled vehicles include the 2005-2007 Chevrolet Cobalt, 2007 Pontiac G5, 2003-2007 Saturn Ion, 2006-2007 Chevrolet HHR, 2006-2007 Pontiac Solstice, and 2006-2007 Saturn Sky.
