PHOENIX—A family that sued Goodyear for an allegedly defective tire is further suing the company and its attorneys for allegedly withholding documents in the product liability case.
The estate of the late Leroy Haeger filed suit May 20 in Maricopa County, Ariz., Superior Court against Goodyear; the legal firms of Fennemore Craig and Roetzel & Andress; and attorneys Graeme Hancock, Basil Musnuff and Deborah Okey.
Haeger, his wife, Donna, and daughter-in-law, Susan, were seriously injured in 2003 when their motor home flew over an embankment and flipped over. Haeger died of unrelated causes in 2008.
The lawsuit blamed a Goodyear G159/275/70R22.5 tire for causing the accident.
In November 2012, Chief Justice Roslyn O. Silver of the Arizona federal district court sanctioned Goodyear and Messrs. Musnuff and Hancock for withholding documents relevant to the case. In her ruling, Silver went so far as to encourage the Haegers to sue Goodyear and its attorneys for fraud.
The new lawsuit accuses the defendants of four counts of misrepresentation and concealment and seeks punitive damages "in an amount sufficient to punish and deter defendants for their willful, outrageous and evil misconduct."
Goodyear officials could not be reached for contact.