The fighting started long before lawyers finally made their opening statements Thursday for a high stakes wrongful death product liability case against Ford Motor Co. in a Lawrenceville courthouse 30 miles northeast of Atlanta.

“I just hope the name calling and personal attacks are over,” said Ford’s lead counsel D. Alan Thomas of Huie Fernambucq & Stewart in Birmingham. Thomas said he didn’t want to have to raise objections during opening statements, but he might.