The shipping industry is an extensive and foundational mode of global transportation and resource distribution. The men and women who work aboard the U.S. fleet are routinely exposed to varying types of cargo, machinery, and unfortunately, a vast array of harmful materials such as asbestos. According to the NGO Shipbreaking Platform, asbestos can still be found in over 65 percent of vessels, including 50 percent of all new-builds despite it being a banned material in shipbuilding since July 2002. It is estimated that a commercial …
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Federal Court Denies Plaintiff’s and Defendants’ Motions in Limine on Eve of Trial
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana
Decedent Terry J. LeGendre worked for defendant Huntington Ingalls, Inc. (Avondale) from October 1967 to January 1968. He was later diagnosed with and died from mesothelioma. Prior to the May 2024 trial, defendants General Electric Company, Paramount Global, Eagle Inc., Foster Wheeler LLC, Uniroyal, Inc., and Taylor-Seidenbach Inc. moved to limit or exclude the plaintiff’s experts. Likewise, the plaintiff moved to exclude the expert opinion presented by defendants Avondale and Bayer CropScience, Inc.
The defendants’ motion …
Continue ReadingCourt Denies Railway Company’s Renewed Motion for Spoliation; Agrees to Bifurcate Trial
Court: United States District Court for the District of Montana, Great Falls Division
In connection to defendant Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway Company’s ongoing litigation in Libby, Montana (covered extensively by the Asbestos Case Tracker, including most recently HERE), the estate of decedent Mary Diana Moe brought an action against BNSF for wrongful death allegedly resulting from decedent’s exposure to asbestos resulting from BNSF’s activities in Libby.
BNSF previously moved for spoliation sanctions stemming from plaintiff’s failure to preserve decedent’s remains after her death. …
Continue ReadingFirst Department Affirms Denial of Pipe Manufacturer’s Motion for Summary Judgment
Court: Supreme Court of New York, Appellate Division, First Department
In this asbestos action, decedent Rudolf Horvath alleged that he was exposed to asbestos from Bondstrand pipes manufactured by defendant, Ameron International, at a sewage plant in midtown Manhattan. In response, Ameron filed a motion for summary judgment, arguing the sewage plant referenced by decedent must have been the North River wastewater treatment plant, which did not exist until 1985 at a time when Ameron no longer manufactured Bondstrand pipe using asbestos.
The trial court …
Continue ReadingFlorida Jury Returns Defense Verdict in Ovarian Cancer Trial
Court: United States District Court, Middle District of Florida
On Thursday April 18, a Florida jury found the talcum powder in Johnson & Johnson’s baby powder product did not cause the ovarian cancer of deceased Sarasota County resident Patricia Matthey.
The plaintiffs alleged in their complaint that J&J suppressed scientific evidence linking talc products to increased cancer risk and that the corporation knew for decades that the talc used in its baby powder could be contaminated with asbestos. At trial, J&J argued that there was …
Continue ReadingChicago Jury Returns $45M Plaintiffs Verdict in Talc Trial
Court: Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois
On April 19, a Chicago jury ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay $45 million to the family of a Cook County woman named Theresa Garcia who died from mesothelioma, allegedly caused by exposure to asbestos in various talc powder products.
Plaintiffs claimed that Theresa Garcia inhaled asbestos fibers contained in the talc, citing to lab tests, which demonstrated talc products could contain small amounts of asbestos, which they say could then cause mesothelioma.
In a statement issued following …
Continue ReadingAppellate Court Reverses Premise Defendant’s Summary Judgment Ruling
Court: Court of Appeals of Texas, Fourteenth District, Houston
Carolyn and Frank Burford were married from November 1962 until Carolyn’s death in 2015. While married, Frank Buford worked for Alcoa at its aluminum smelter in Rockdale, Texas. As a potlining helper, Mr. Burford regularly worked with and around asbestos-containing materials. Mrs. Burford (Carolyn, or decedent) washed his work clothing every day for a period of 25 years. In 2006, she sought medical care after developing shortness of breath. Her pulmonologist diagnosed her with asbestosis and she later died …
Continue ReadingAppellate Court Affirms Finding of Liability against Talc Defendant; Vacates Apportionment of Liability
Court: Superior Court of Pennsylvania
In this asbestos action, appellant American International Industries (AII) appealed from a judgment entered in December 2022 awarding damages to appellee, Holly Fisher, executrix of the Estate of Sandra Reichart (decedent), following a jury trial.
Decedent owned a beauty salon from 1960 through 1985. During that time, decedent allegedly used the following talcum powders on clients: Clubman, Jeris, Jean Nate, and Cashmere Bouquet. Following decedent’s passing from mesothelioma in 2019, Fisher field a lawsuit claiming that the aforementioned talcum powders …
Continue ReadingDefense Verdict in Retrial of Packing Manufacturer
Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco
Plaintiff Lisa Castillo filed an action in the San Francisco, California Superior Court alleging that her husband, Abraham Castillo, died of mesothelioma as a result of his exposure to asbestos during his service in the United States Navy in the 1980s and later employment as a refrigeration mechanic from 1983 to 2013. The case proceeded to trial against John Crane, Inc. on theories of negligence and design defect. The plaintiff alleged that John Crane supplied asbestos-containing packing …
Continue ReadingSummary Judgment Granted to Oven Manufacturer on Causation in NYCAL
Court: Supreme Court of New York, New York County
In this action, plaintiff June Savianeso alleges that decedent Michael Savianeso was exposed to asbestos from the products of various defendants.
Decedent passed away without giving deposition testimony. Subsequently, decedent’s brother, James, provided seven days of testimony. As pertinent to this motion, James testified that he worked as a pizza maker at a pizzeria in New Jersey for approximately 30 hours per week from June to August during the summers of 1976 and 1977. James mainly …
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