Author: Lynn A. Lehnert

Case Decisions / Illinois
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Plaintiffs Presented Sufficient Evidence to Withstand Motion for Directed Verdict

The decedent’s estate filed a claim alleging asbestos exposure caused decedent to develop mesothelioma. The trial court directed a verdict in favor of Welco Manufacturing Company because no witnesses could specify how often the decedent used Welco’s products. The plaintiffs appealed, and the appellate court reversed and remanded for a new trial.

The decedent’s cousin, Walter, testified that he and the decedent applied joint compound on close to 50 commercial and residential sites for four months in Illinois in 1965. Walter testified they used, among …

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Other Asbestos News
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South Dakota Enacts Legislation Allowing Transparency in Bankruptcy Trust Claims

An ongoing issue in asbestos litigation is whether plaintiffs have received monies from bankruptcy trusts. The plaintiff’s bar has traditionally fought discovery of this information, but recently South Dakota became the first state to enact legislation regarding this issue.  Senate Bill No. 138 recommends amending the code to order plaintiffs to identify any asbestos trust claims filed by them not more than one hundred and twenty days before trial. Such identification shall include: information about the trust claim itself; the amount claimed, or to be …

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Case Decisions / Florida / Remand/Removal
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Case Remanded to Florida State Court Because Defendant Not Fraudulently Joined to Defeat Diversity

In this case alleging asbestos exposure from talc, mesothelioma plaintiff filed a motion to remand back to Florida state court after defendant Johnson & Johnson removed to federal court based upon diversity jurisdiction. The defendant argued that the plaintiff fraudulently joined defendant Publix Super Markets, Inc. (Publix) to destroy diversity. The court determined Publix was not fraudulently joined and remanded.

In determining remand, the court must evaluate the factual allegations in the light most favorable to the plaintiff. If there is even a possibility that …

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Case Decisions / Missouri / Summary Judgment
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Collateral Estoppel Applied to Bar Second Asbestos Case Against Crane by Same Plaintiff

The decedent, a civilian employee for the United States Navy from 1958-1964, died from mesothelioma. Prior to passing he brought suit in St. Louis City, Missouri, in December 2015, which the defendants removed to federal court. His representatives continued the suit after he passed. Defendant Crane Co. filed a motion to dismiss based upon collateral estoppel. The court granted this motion.

In December 2009, the decedent brought an action against Crane and others in Massachusetts based upon asbestosis. Crane filed a motion for summary judgment …

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Case Decisions / Choice of Law / Louisiana
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Laws of Two States Applied to Two Different Issues

The plaintiff alleged the decedent, who died of mesothelioma, was exposed to asbestos while serving as an engineman, machinery repairman, and machinist mate in the U.S. Navy during the 1960s. Although the majority of the decedent’s exposure occurred on four ships, to which maritime law applied, the plaintiff also alleged exposure during the six months decedent trained at a land-based naval academy in Idaho. Here the court decided whether Idaho or Louisiana applied to this six-month time frame. The plaintiff argued Louisiana law applied, and …

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Asbestos Litigation Analysis
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Personal Jurisdiction Decision by Missouri Supreme Court to Significantly Impact Asbestos Litigation in Missouri

St. Louis City, Missouri is often termed a “judicial hellhole” for corporate defendants in product liability actions, most notably in asbestos litigation. Until recently, Missouri courts offered little guidance on what constituted general jurisdiction for corporate defendants in light of the U.S. Supreme Court’s holding in Daimler AG v. Bauman, 134 S.Ct. 746 (2014). In Daimler, the Supreme Court held that absent exceptional circumstances, a company is only subject to general jurisdiction in its state of formation or where it has its principal …

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Significant Verdicts
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California Jury Awards $10 Million to Mesothelioma Plaintiff Who Worked with Asbestos Pipe

Plaintiffs Michael and Cindy Burch filed suit against various defendants, including a pipe manufacturer, alleging that Michael Burch developed pleural mesothelioma due to asbestos exposure. After a seven week jury trial, the jury found in favor of the plaintiffs and awarded $10 million. In doing so, the jury found that the pipe manufacturer misrepresented and concealed the health risks of handling and working with its product.

The plaintiff cut, drilled, and installed asbestos cement pipe while working for J.C. Plumbing Company and Valley Engineers in …

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California / Case Decisions / Summary Judgment
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Lack of Factual Basis for Plaintiffs’ Assertion of Causation Yields Grant of Summary Judgment

After the decedent died of mesothelioma, her husband and adult son filed a wrongful death and survivorship complaint against numerous defendants. W.W. Henry Company, predecessor to the Henry Company (who was also named and not a party to this motion) filed a motion for summary judgment based upon lack of exposure. The appellate court affirmed the trial court’s granting of this motion.

The plaintiffs alleged exposure to asbestos from the early 1970s-early 1980s during the decedent’s work as an art teacher and sculptor, and from …

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Case Decisions / Maritime/Admiralty Law / Pennsylvania / Statute of Limitations
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“Discovery Rule” Applied for Plaintiffs’ Claim to Survive Two-Year Statue of Limitations

The plaintiffs asserted that the decedent, Joseph Conneen, was exposed to asbestos while working as a pipefitter and plumber from 1962-80 at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard and Rohm and Haas. The decedent died of lung cancer. The complaint was filed on January 20, 2015. In March 2015, the case was removed to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania as part of MDL-875. Defendant Goulds moved for summary judgment on the basis of Pennsylvania’s two-year statute of limitations. The court denied this …

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Bare Metal/Component Parts / Case Decisions / Illinois
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Madison County Jury Renders Defense Verdict for Brake Grinder Manufacturer

Plaintiffs Stan and Janet Urban, of West Bloomfield, Michigan, filed a lawsuit in Madison County, Illinois in March 2013. The plaintiffs alleged Mr. Urban developed mesothelioma due to asbestos exposure from using Ammco brake grinders while employed as a high school auto technology teacher. Defendant Hennessy Industries was the last remaining defendant at trial. Ammco is Hennessy’s predecessor. The jury disagreed with the plaintiffs’ request for $10 million, and rendered a verdict in favor of Hennessy.

The plaintiffs argued that Hennessy had the power to …

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