General Motors Is Trying to Limit Lawsuits Over Ignition Defect

General Motors on Monday filed a motion to limit lawsuits from consumers related to a defect with its ignition system that has prompted a recall of 2.6 million vehicles and has been linked to 13 deaths.

The automaker filed the motion in U.S. bankruptcy court to set a bar on lawsuits related to cars it sold before its 2009 bankruptcy. Plaintiffs in a class-action suit against the company over the ignition glitch also filed a motion to declare that GM can't use the bankruptcy to shield itself form such claims.

GM argues that after it emerged from bankruptcy protection it became in effect a different legal entity. "New GM's recall covenant does not create a basis for the plaintiffs to sue new GM for economic damages relating to a vehicle or part sold by old GM," the company wrote in a filing in the Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. The motion doesn't address claims related to accidents, including personal injury and wrongful deaths. Read more...