Plaintiffs Push For More From GM's Compensation Plan
From the National Journal
Lawyers who represent victims of General Motors Co.’s ignition switch defects are raising concerns about a planned compensation fund, pushing for punitive damages and questioning who would be eligible.
During a June 18 congressional hearing over GM’s recalls, chief executive officer Mary Barra promised that the fund would not be capped and that people with injuries or deaths predating its 2009 bankruptcy could be eligible. She said GM would begin processing claims on Aug. 1.
“If the ignition switch was part of the issue, we want them in the program,” she said.
But she deferred specifics to the fund’s administrator, claims attorney Kenneth Feinberg, who is expected to announce the details within a few weeks. He has been meeting with plaintiffs lawyers to gather their views. Some of those lawyers, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they were pleased with some details, such as the possibility of including cases in which the driver was at fault, even if he or she was intoxicated.
But they’re pushing for additional concessions.
“We know the direction he is leading us into, and we’re not sure we like all of it,” said Jere Beasley, founding shareholder of Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis & Miles in Montgomery, Ala.
Feinberg and GM spokesman Greg Martin declined to comment.
Feinberg is a seasoned administrator of victim funds, including those for last year’s Boston Marathon bombings, BP PLC’s Deepwater Horizon oil spill and the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. GM has recalled 2.6 million vehicles this year over the defect, which could shut down engines, disabling power steering, airbags and other functions.
Read more in our daily News Update...
From the National Journal
Lawyers who represent victims of General Motors Co.’s ignition switch defects are raising concerns about a planned compensation fund, pushing for punitive damages and questioning who would be eligible.
During a June 18 congressional hearing over GM’s recalls, chief executive officer Mary Barra promised that the fund would not be capped and that people with injuries or deaths predating its 2009 bankruptcy could be eligible. She said GM would begin processing claims on Aug. 1.
“If the ignition switch was part of the issue, we want them in the program,” she said.
But she deferred specifics to the fund’s administrator, claims attorney Kenneth Feinberg, who is expected to announce the details within a few weeks. He has been meeting with plaintiffs lawyers to gather their views. Some of those lawyers, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they were pleased with some details, such as the possibility of including cases in which the driver was at fault, even if he or she was intoxicated.
But they’re pushing for additional concessions.
“We know the direction he is leading us into, and we’re not sure we like all of it,” said Jere Beasley, founding shareholder of Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis & Miles in Montgomery, Ala.
Feinberg and GM spokesman Greg Martin declined to comment.
Feinberg is a seasoned administrator of victim funds, including those for last year’s Boston Marathon bombings, BP PLC’s Deepwater Horizon oil spill and the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. GM has recalled 2.6 million vehicles this year over the defect, which could shut down engines, disabling power steering, airbags and other functions.
Read more in our daily News Update...