First NYC trial underway in GM ignition switch recall case

NEW YORK (AP) - A New York jury has begun watching the first federal trial to result from hundreds of lawsuits brought against General Motors after faulty ignition switches led to massive recalls.

Attorney Bob Hilliard told jurors Tuesday in an opening statement that an Oklahoma man injured in a 2014 accident is representative of hundreds of other people harmed by GM's actions.

GM attorney Mike Brock countered in his opening that the automaker will prove the accident at issue in the Manhattan courtroom was not caused by a defective ignition switch.

The trial is one of six scheduled this year that are designed to help over 1,000 litigants settle claims with GM down the road.

GM has issued recalls affecting over 30 million vehicles since early 2014.