namely, to help ATL structure an accident prevention program embracing the entire spectrum of products, not just automobiles or G.M. automobiles or just Corvairs, and to help make our membership whole in competence and conscience, the better to represent accident victims of mechanized 20th Century American Life. (2) I enclose copies of correspondence from our membership requesting leads and guidelines with respect to injuries cause by Inflammables, Power Lawn Mowers, Exploding Bottles, Drugs, (Aralan and MER/29), and the Corvair. Please note carefully the following: First, the above enclosures show that ATL's Consumer Protection Exchange handles Corvair inquiries in precisely the same fashion we handle any other type inquiry on product-caused injuries. There is no "special treatment" for G.M., Corvair, or Nader. Second, in each and every case our format is the same, namely, we list whichever experts we know of concerning the particular product (note how pitifully few they are on the plaintiff's side!); we list our members who have made previous inquiry on the particular product with their addresses; if available and we know about it, we list bibliography of legal and technical, scientific, and engineering references. Third (very important), there is a basic bedrock understanding that any ATL member who receives lists of other lawyer members from us may write and request all manner of aids from his fellow members without charge. This is one of the advertised boons of ATL membership. This means that the ATL recipient of one of our products lists can and normally and regularly writes and requests from his listed co-members any of the following: copies of pleadings, lists of experts, technical and scientific bibliographies, copies of interrogatories, medical reports, copies of depositions, lists of legal authorities in point, names and addresses of testing and certifying laboratories, references to safety codes and standards, etc., etc. It is within this context of ingrained practice and procedure that ATL's giving of Nader's name as an available expert or consultant in automobile design hazard should be viewed. Thus viewed, we submit that our practice of listing Nader's name in such cases in our publications and correspondence is in no way discreditable or subject to legitimate criticism. Fourth, was Nader paid by any of the ATL lawyers who may have written or consulted him? I do not know. I devoutly hope he was. The laborer is worthy of his hire, whether a private detective hired by G.M. or an expert on unsafe design of automobiles. Repeat: I do not know of a single case in which an ATL member paid Nader for consultation or other services. But there is an easy way to find out. Ask him under oath. If there is anything we can add by way of clarification or amplification of the above, we will be happy to do so. Will your staff, when finished with the enclosures, return to us all original correspondence enclosed. We do not need return of any copies, just originals. Respectfully, THOMAS F. LAMBERT, Jr., BUTLER, BINKLEY, MCHUGH, BUTLER & TUNE, AMERICAN TRIAL LAWYERS ASSOCIATION, Gentlemen: This office represents a claimant in a Corvair car that went out of control as a result of the inherent manufacturing defect therein. It is our understanding that you have a service for members wherein certain information and aids are made available for the preparation and trial of this type suit. Would you please forward to us the preparation portion and enclose your bill for the same. Also please advise us of what information or aids you have available for trial. I am a member in good standing of American Trial Lawyers Association and would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the officers, directors and fulltime employees of the Association. You are providing tremendous services to claimant's attorney and therefore to claimants. Thanking you kindly in advance for your cooperation in this matter, I remain Yours very truly, JOHN C. TUNE, Jr. AMERICAN TRIAL LAWYERS ASSOCIATION, JOHN C. TUNE, Jr., Esq.. Attorney at Law, Butler, Binkley, McHugh, Butler & Tune, DEAR MR. TUNE: With reference to your letter of Februray 24 where in you request information on the Corvair, we offer the following. The list of cases and attorney handling related Corvair cases is extensive. The names of those who have sent inquiries to this officer are enclosed. One of the most important cases involving this automobile was a California case settled by David M. Harney of Harney, Ford and Schlottman, 650 South Grand Avenue, Los Angles, California 90017, for $70,000 against General Motors. The passenger in the car suffered the loss of an arm in an accident claimed to have been caused by the poorly designed automobile. It is our understanding that David was the attorney who locked horns (unsuccessfully) in another suit against General Motors. The 1962 issue of the Consumer Report-Buyer's Guide, at p. 382, reports the Corvair tends to oversteer under extreme conditions. I would suggest reading their report. David Baum of Pollack and Pollack, 3810 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, reported he is currently handling several cases dealing with tight steering in the Corvair Monza. Barney Masterson, 100-2nd Street, North, St. Petersburg, Florida, was on the losing end of a recent skirmish with General Motors. However, he should be a source for obtaining valuable information. We suggest you write to Ralph Nader, 53 Hillside Avenue, Winsted, Connecticut. Ralph is a lawyer who has developed expertise in the area of automobile manufacturer liability. He has written what is perhaps the most comprehensive article available on the subject of "Automobile Design Hazards," which was just published in 16 American Jurisprudence-Proof of Facts Annotated 1 (Bancroft-Whitney, San Francisco, 1965) and has a plentiful reservoir of information on the Corvair. For some general materials, see 7 ATL News L. 281 (Nov. 1964); TRIAL, Vol. 1. No. 1 (Dec. 1964), p. 29; Business Week, Aug. 28, 1965, p. 30; Houston L. Rev. 233 (Fall 1965). See also 8 ATL News L. 341-342 (Dec. 1965) for our bibliography on the Corvair and Unsafe Design in Automobiles. Jefferson G. Greer of Greer & Greer, 424 South Cheyenne, Tulsa, Oklahoma, is formulating a group whereby mutual assistance will be given in the preparation of these Corvair cases. This will enable the practitioners handling such cases to collect the relevant data and prosecute the case with a minimum of cost. Jefferson has recently informed us that he has prepared a set of interrogatories which will be made available to interested counsel at duplicating and mailing costs. convenience. I would suggest that you contact Jefferson at your earliest Some of our members have informed us, although we have no direct knowledge, that Dr. Thomas Manos of the University of Detroit has done extensive tests on the Corvair and has colored motion pictures of these tests. We are told that he is an excellent witness. Finally, a default judgment was entered against General Motors in a suit brought in Chicago for the latter's stubborn refusal to disclose incriminating evidence on its testing and engineering processes. Several claims are now being submitted to the jury on the question of damages. You might find it helpful to communicate with ATL stalwart, Louis G. Davidson, Suite 2007, 100 North La Salle Street, Chicago, Illinois, who is the chief attorney in that case. Sincerely, WILLIAM S. COHEN, Assistant Editor-in-Chief. P.S. See also Nader, Unsafe at Any Speed 1-26 (Grossman Publishers, Inc., New York City, 1965). AMERICAN TRIAL LAWYERS ASSOCIATION, RALPH J. COLETTA, Esq., Attorney at Law, Peoria, Ill. DEAR MR. COLETTA: With reference to our recent telephone conversation on January 12 concerning the Corvair, we offer the following. The list of cases and attorneys handling related Corvair cases is extensive. The names of those who have sent inquiries to this office are enclosed. One of the most important cases involving this automobile was a California case settled by David M. Harney of Harney, Ford and Schlottman, 650 South Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, California 90017, for $70,000 against General Motors. The passenger in the car suffered the loss of an arm in an accident claimed to have been caused by the poorly designed automobile. It is our understanding that David was also the attorney who locked horns (unsuccessfully) in another suit against General Motors. The 1962 issue of the Consumer Report-Buyer's Guide, at p. 382, reports the Corvair tends to oversteer under extreme conditions. I would suggest reading their report. David Baum of Pollack and Pollack, 3810 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, reported he is currently handling several cases dealing with tight steering in the Corvair Monza. Barney Masterson, 140 Second Street, North, St. Petersburg, Florida, was on the losing end of a recent skirmish with General Motors. However, he should be a source for obtaining valuable information. We also suggest you write to Ralph Nader, 53 Hillside Avenue, Winsted, Connecticut. Ralph is a lawyer who has developed expertise in the area of automobile manufacturer liability. He has written what is perhaps the most comprehensive article available on the subject of Automobile Design Hazards, which was just published in 16 American Jurisprudence-Proof of Facts Annotated, 1 (Bancroft-Whitney, San Francisco, 1965), and has a plentiful reservoir of information on the Corvair. For some general materials, see 7 ATL News L. 281 (Nov. 1964), TRIAL, Vol. 1, No. 1 (Dec. 1964), p. 29; Business Week, Aug. 28, 1965, p. 30; 8 Houston L. Rev. 233 (Fall 1965). See also 8 ATL News L. 341-42 (Dec. 1965) for our bibliography on the Corvair and Unsafe Design in Automobiles. Jefferson G. Greer of Greer & Greer, 424 South Cheyenne, Tulsa, Oklahoma, is formulating a group whereby mutual assistance will be rendered in the preparation of these Corvair cases. This will enable the practitioners handling such cases to collect the relevant data and prosecute the case with a minimum of cost. Jefferson has recently informed us that he has prepared a set of interrogatories which will be made available to interested counsel at duplicating and mailing costs. I would suggest that you contact Jefferson at your earliest convenience. Some of our members have informed us, although we have no direct knowledge, that Dr. Thomas Manos of the University of Detroit has done extensive testing on the Corvair and has colored motion pictures of these tests. We are told that he is an excellent witness. Finally, a default judgment was entered against General Motors in a suit brought in Chicago for the latter's stubborn refusal to disclose incrimating information on its testing and engineering processes. Several claims are now being submitted to the jury on the question of damages. You might find it helpful to communicate with ATL Stalwart, Louis G. Davidson, Suite 2007, 100 North La Salle Street, Chicago, Illinois, who is the chief attorney in that case. As I mentioned on the telephone, some jurisdictions are now extending the concept of strict privity-free tort and warranty liability to innocent third persons and by-standers. For a case analogous to yours, see Mitchell v. Smith, 214 A. 2d 694 (Conn. Super. 1965), 8 ATL News L. 341 (Dec. 1965). See also Piercefield v. Remington Arms Co., 133 N.W. 2d 129 (1965), 8 ATL News L. 75-85 (April 1965), Connolley v. Hagi, 188 A. 2d 884 (Conn. Super. 1963); 7 NACCA News L. 159 (July 1964). In Henningsen v. Bloomfield Motors, Inc., 161 A. 2d 69 (1960), 26–27 NACCA L.J. 96-104, the court seemed to imply that strict liability will extend to all persons injured by defective products. See also Vandermark v. Ford Motor Co., 391 P. 2d 168 (Cal. 1964). We hope the foregoing will prove serviceable. CORVAIR INQUIRERS WILLIAM S. COHEN. Assistant Editor-in-Chief. James Cullis, Card, Merrill, Cullis & Timm, 2041 Main Street, Sarasota, Florida Wendell Gronso, Cramer & Gronso, Burns, Oregon Verne Lawyer, Lawyer & Lawyer, Suite 400–427, Fleming Building, Des Moines 9, Iowa Vincent F. Nolan, 45 Exchange Street, Rochester 14, New York George W. Fryhofer, Waynesboro, Georgia Bernard Chazen, Baker, Garger & Chazen, 1 Newark Street, Hoboken, New Jersey Robert E. Sharp, Bott, Sharp & Carey, 500 Arygle Building, 300 East 12th Street, Kansas City, Missouri 64106 Allen Glenn, Bryant, Glenn & Thomas, Post Office Box 282, Petroleum Building, Abilene, Texas Joseph A. Maiullo, Maiullo & Maiullo, 2480 First National Building, Detroit 26, Michigan David Neal Rosen, Forquer, Wolfe & Rosen, 12th Floor, Luhrs Tower, Phoenix, Arizona 85003 Lester Katz, 983 Main Street, Hartford. Connecticut Robert J. Jacobson, 803-08 Gem City Savings Building, Dayton, Ohio 45402 Louis G. Davidson, 100 North La Salle Street, Chicago, Illinois 60602 David R. Goldberg, Cubbon & Rice, Suite 300-Security Building, Toledo, Ohio 43604 Artie E. Vaughn, Sedgwick County Court House, Wichita, Kansas Emanuel Moss, 1800 Girard Trust Building, Philadelphia 2, Pennsylvania James H. Henry, Henry, McCord & Forrester, 205 Coop Building, Tullahoma. Tennessee Dan O'Leary, Pozzi, Levin & Wilson, Suite 808 Standard Plaza, 1100 S.W. Sixth Avenue, Portland, Oregon 97204 C. Ben Bowen, Bolt & Bowen, 14 Beattie Place, Post Office Box 445, Greenville, South Carolina Robert H. Wilson, Big Horn County Courthouse, Hardin, Montana 59034 Joseph Kelner, 127 Broadway, New York, New York 10007 Victor F. Schmidt, 1100 Beachwood Road, Columbus, Ohio 43227 Norman W. Larsen, Fine, Simon & Schneider, 909 First National Bank Building, Minneapolis 2, Minnesota Jefferson G. Greer, Greer and Greer, 424 South Cheyenne, Tulsa 3, Oklahoma Phillip Bartell, 516 Standard Building, Cleveland, Ohio Walter Knabe, Capell, Howard, Knabe & Cobbs, 57 Adams Avenue, Montgomery, Alabama Al J. Cone, Miller, Cone, Owen, Wagner & Nugent, 507 North Olive Avenue, Post Office Box 3411, West Palm Beach, Florida 33402 Jeck R. Berger, Suite 1701, 5455 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles 36, California Peter Schneider, Schnieder & Kaufman, 60 East 42nd Street, New York 17, New York M. Louis Abedon, Abedon, Michaelson and Stanzler, 626 Industrial Bank Building, Providence, Rhode Island 02903 Burton S. Resnic, Resnic, Beauregard and Resnic, 316 High Street, Holyoke, Massachusetts C. M. Leibson, Leibson & Leibson, 140 South Fifth Street, Suite 105, Louisville 2, Kentucky Alan J. Friedlander, 431 Park Avenue, Waverly, New York 14892 Michael J. Silverstein, Silverstein, Kwitney & Goudiss, 420 Lincoln Road Mall, Mercantile National Bank Building, Miami Beach 39, Florida Paul J. Brinson, 2912 Delaware Avenue, Kenmore, New York 14217 Louis Samuel Fine, Fine, Staud & Silverman, Suite 1912, 121 South Broad Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19107 Daniel J. Allan, McDermott, Quinn & Higgins, 1411 Walnut Street, Philadelphia 2, Pennsylvania William E. Townsley, 3199 Avenue A, Beaumont, Texas 77705 George W. Wilhite, Jr., Suite 200, Mafrige Building, 411 Fannin, Houston, Texas 77002 Romolo Versaci, 1164 Wendell Avenue at Rugby, Schenectady, New York 12308 Robert P. Hall, 2411 First National Building, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Elmer I. Schwartz, Metzenbaum, Gaines, Schwartz, Krupansky, Finley & Stern, 700 Union Commerce Building, Cleveland, Ohio 44115 Hyman Friedman, Kleinberg & Friedman, 277 Broadway, New York, New York 10007 John W. Day, Barker, Day, Callow & Taylow, 1925 IBM Building, Seattle, Washington 98101 Edward M. Miller, Levin, Levin, Garvett and Dill, 1250 Penobscot Building, Detroit 26, Michigan Richard E. Shandell, Fuchsberg and Fuchsberg, 250 Broadway, New York, New York 10007 Harold Infield, Quine and Infield, The First Akron Building, 611 West Market Charles A. Williams, Williams Building, Broadway at 17th, Paducah, Kentucky Robert J. Rebic, 13849 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland 12, Ohio Richard J. Dunlap, Regal and McDonell, 577 Dexter Horton Building, Seattle, Washington 98104 Milton L. Neimark, 50 Court Street, Brooklyn, New York 11201 Arthur Lee Gaston, Gaston & Gaston, Chester, South Carolina Bart E. Shea, Findley, Shea, Cannam, Head & Buchsbaum, 9th Floor, Realty Building, Savannah, Georgia 31401 Robert M. Ross, Richter, Lord, Toll & Cavanaugh, 121 South Broad Street, Broad and Sansom Streets, Philadelphia 7, Pennsylvania James C. Britt, Tuttle & Britt, Franklin Federal Building, Main and High Streets, Columbus, Ohio 43215 Marcial A. Knapp, Post Office Box 507, Angleton, Texas Dean L. Foote, Foote, St. Mary & Stark, Suite 313-16 B & B Building, 546 Hamilton Street, Allentown, Pennsylvania 19101 Henry R. Berger, 1610 Wisconsin Avenue, Georgetown, Washington 7, D.C. Morton L. Friedman, Friedman & Collard, 1831 Eye Street, Sacramento, California 95814 Stanley M. Chesley, Waite, Schindel, Bayless & Schneider, 1318 Central Trust Tower, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Ralph J. Coletta, 920 Jefferson Building. Peoria, Illinois John C. Tune, Jr., Butler, Binkley, McHugh, Butler & Tune, Fourteenth Floor, Nashville Bank and Trust Building, Nashville, Tennessee 37201 Hadden W. Roth, Bagshaw, Martinelli, Weissich & Jordan, Suite 329 Albert Building, 1010 B Street, San Rafael, California 94901 Leo Rosen, Suit 1210, 750 Main Street, Hartford 3. Connecticut C. Ryman Herr, Jr., Herr and Fisher, 82 Main Street, Flemington, New Jersey 08822 Sheridan Albert, Pokorny, Schrenzel & Pokorny, 66 Court Street, Brooklyn 1, New York Phillip Bartell, 516 Standard Building, Cleveland, Ohio Senator ABRAHAM RIBICOFF, EXHIBIT 148 MARCH 16, 1966. Chairman, Subcommittee on Executive Reorganization, Old Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. DEAR SENATOR RIBICOFF: For the record of your hearing into the investigation of Ralph Nader that the General Motors Corporation apparently undertook, I |