-
"One of the nation's premier plaintiffs' firms."
American Lawyer
-
"Representing the best qualities of the plaintiffs' bar."
The National Law Journal
-
"Their effective and caring advocacy for clients has earned Lieff Cabraser its first-class reputation."
The Daily Journal
Media Center
5.8 Million GM Truck Owners to Get Compensation
The Los Angeles Times
April 18, 2001
Ending years of legal stalemate, General Motors Corp. said it will begin mailing notices today to current and former owners of 5.8 million older pickups who qualify for discounts of $250 to $1,000 on new GM vehicles as part of a massive class-action settlement. The coupon offer is the centerpiece of a long-delayed settlement of suits filed in 1992 that claimed defective fuel systems made millions of GM trucks more prone to catching fire or exploding in collisions.
Although the basic terms of the settlement were set five years ago, bickering over transferability of the coupons continued until recently. The transfer rules are crucial because they determine how many class-action members will benefit as well as the total value of certificates GM will have to redeem. Such coupon settlements have come under criticism in the past, in part because relatively few class action members have been in a position to take advantage of a coupon offer. In this case, probably only a fraction of those who qualify will purchase a new GM vehicle for a $1,000 cut in price. As a result, plaintiffs' lawyers and consumer groups have sought to create a secondary market for the certificates, sparking a conflict with GM and delaying implementation of the deal.
A new business, CertificateRebates.com, has been established to buy and resell the coupons of class action members who can't use them and have no other market. James Dawley, a former insurance man who runs CRG, says the firm will pay $100 for coupons, with the intention of offering them for $150 to $200 apiece to buyers such as fleet operators, leasing firms and dealers, who may be able to use the coupons as incentives to close a sale.
How many class action members take advantage will depend on "how many hoops they have to jump through, said Fabrice Vincent of Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, one of the plaintiffs' law firms.
For more information on the GM Pickup Truck settlement, click here.