Judicial Panel Grants Defense Request, Opposed by Certain Plaintiffs, for Pretrial Coordination of Class Action Lawsuits Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1407 and Concurs with Defense Recommendation to Transfer Class Actions to Eastern District of Michigan
Four putative class action lawsuits (three in Michigan and one in California) were filed against General Motors “relating to (1) the impact of the conversion of the cellular network from an analog/digital network to a digital-only network on December 31, 2007, and (2) the availability of OnStar service in certain vehicles thereafter.” In re General Motors OnStar Contract Litig., 502 F.Supp.2d 1357, 2007 WL 2386412, *1 (Jud.Pan.Mult.Lit. 2007). Defense attorneys filed a motion with the Judicial Panel for Multidistrict Litigation (MDL) requesting centralization of the class actions pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1407 in the Eastern District of Michigan, where three of the class actions were pending. The Michigan plaintiffs supported this defense request; the California plaintiffs opposed centralization. Id. The Judicial Panel granted the motion to centralize the class actions and agreed with the defense transferee court recommendation “because (1) three actions and a potential tag-along action are currently pending in this district, and (2) relevant documents and witnesses are likely located in or near defendants’ facilities in Michigan.” Id.
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