When Toyota finally came up with what it said was a problem-wide mechanical fix for the unintended-acceleration issues that prompted a global recall affecting more than 8 million vehicles, not everyone was convinced that a mechanical problem explained the entire issue -- including the Department of Transportation, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and, most damningly, some anonymous Toyota officials.

Let's add another doubtful party into the mix: Dimitrios Biller, a former in-house lawyer from 2003 to 2007 who defended the company in rollover accident lawsuits, says that the electronic throttle control, not just jammed floor mats and stuck pedals, is the cause of the problem -- and that Toyota knew it all along.

Biller is suing Toyota, claiming that the company withheld pertinent data from the government and in civil lawsuits; Toyota is countersuing, claiming that Biller is violating attorney-client privilege and the terms of a $3.9 million settlement that marked the end of his tenure with the company. Biller has said in an interview the evidence that shows Toyota withheld information about faulty electronics, which he obtained while a lawyer for the company, would still be considered privileged information.

Toyota claims that Biller did not work on any cases related to unintended acceleration; Biller's lawyer states that he did work on one such case, in 2005.

(Source: USA Today.)