Our runners up for Litigator of the Week include Kirkland & Ellis partners Erin Murphy and Rick Godfrey, who drove home a victory for General Motors LLC before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
The three-judge panel unanimously held that “New GM” did not assume liability for punitive damages when it purchased most of the assets of General Motors Company (“Old GM”) following Old GM’s bankruptcy. Had the court gone the other way, it could have cost New GM millions or billions in nationwide litigation over defective ignition switches in 2.6 million older recalled cars, as well as all other accident cases involving Old GM vehicles in general.
