Opel Denies Talks to Reach Out-of-Court Settlement with VW

12/02/96

Reuters reported that German carmaker Opel AG denied that it was talking with Volkswagen AG about the possibility of an out-of-court settlement in a civil suit filed in the U.S. The suit alleges that Volkswagen engaged in industrial espionage against Opel by stealing industrial secrets.

Following a report in last week's Spiegel magazine in Germany that said the carmakers were conducting secret talks to settle the suit, Opel issued the following statement: "There are at the moment no settlement discussions between Opel (and parent company General Motors Corp) and Volkswagen," Opel said in a statement.

Opel said that it was against its policy to comment on the status of confidential settlement negotiations, but that it felt compelled to comment in this case, "to correct misleading information that has been disseminated to the public."

No Volkswagen spokesman was immediately available for comment, but a company official said the carmaker was expected to be release a statement.

Opel took the opportunity to reaffirm its position that any talks to settle the lawsuit would require VW to fire Jose Ignacio Lopez, include payment for damages, and include a public explanation and apology. Opel alleges that Lopez, a former Opel executive, stole secret documents and delivered them to VW when VW hired him away from Opel.

Opel said, "Volkswagen management has not acceded to these fundamental and equitable bases for an honorable and fair resolution of this matter.

"Rather than take these necessary steps, Volkswagen management has continued to deny any wrongdoing and has supported Lopez by retaining him as a senior member of management," Opel's statement continued.

GM and Opel asserted that they would persist in their legal fight against Volkswagen in both the United States and Germany and would cooperate with prosecutors who are reviewing criminal charges against VW and Lopez.

Paul Dever -- The Auto Channel