It hasn't been that long since the Sony battery scandal, where Dell was forced to recall millions of notebooks due to defective batteries. Unfortunately for the Texas based company, it seems it's not quite out of the woods. A group of Canadian consumers are suing now for another run of defective laptops - but this time, they say Dell may have known about it.

The suit was filed in the Ontario Superior Court, and is being requested for class-action approval. It applies to purchasers of the Inspiron 1100, 1150, 5100, 5150, and 5160 models. According to the paperwork, the laptops are knowingly faulty by design, being prone to overheating and motherboard failure due to improper cooling.

It further alleges that despite there being clear issues with the laptops, Dell sold them anyway. Since there have been no problems with these laptops catching fire or causing injury, the suit is not seeking punitive damages. Instead, the plaintiffs simply want their laptops repaired or replaced (the newer models have fixed the issues) free of charge. Dell was previously charging for the repairs.

The company has not responded to any questions regarding the suit. Due to the amount of possible plaintiffs, the Ontario Superior Court will weigh out carefully whether the suit should even be class-action. Doing so would not only increase the potential damages to Dell, but also take a lot longer - the court would have to allow each person in Canada who purchased the laptops a fair opportunity to join in the suit.

Have you got a thought on the suit? Have you had problems with these laptops? Tell us your thoughts in our forums.