Comments about ‘Do courts sanction suit secrets?’

Any litigation or settlement of court cases should be public records, even if settled out of court. Once the courts are involved every aspect of the case should be public record. Too many corporations and insurance companies use this tactic to hide defective products from consumers. No court should authorize sealing public records or private settlements on cases brought to court, its an injustice and criminal in behavior. And you can't use individual privacy as that was surrendered by filing a law suit. Insuring responsible industry is paramount to public safety and peoples lives.

I guess I'm not surprised that the manufacturers try to keep these documents secret, but I'm deeply disappointed that the judges allow them to do so.

Many of us like to get quality items and are willing to pay for them. Organizations on a budget, however, need to watch their costs and are forced to opt for the less desirable because money is tight. In the case of this van crash, part of the problem was the tire quality. However, any tire will fail if under-inflated and subjected to over-heating by excessive speed. We need to realize that our vehicles are not Indy race cars and don't have those high quality components for high speed. The van which crashed was not designed for 80 mph-plus, so the driver bears a certain responsibility. All of us are in too much of a hurry and drive too fast. We need to slow down and stay alive.