Federal Judge Sends Key GM Case to Georgia Court – ABC News
By Tom Krisker
“It has to be a bad day for General Motors,” said Jere Beasley, a Montgomery, Alabama, lawyer who is on the Meltons’ legal team. The move to a local court, he said, is likely to speed up questioning of company executives and employees under oath. A local jury also is more likely to issue strong punitive damages if it finds GM at fault, he said.
Beasley said he and Lance Cooper, a Georgia lawyer who filed the original case, plan to file motions on Monday asking the judge to allow depositions of GM CEO Mary Barra, Corporate Counsel Michael Milliken and all 15 employees that were dismissed by GM due to the ignition switch case. They’ll also ask to question Ray DeGiorgio, the engineer who designed the switch, and all of his supervisors.