Category: Bare Metal/Component Parts

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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Bare Metal/Component Parts / Case Decisions / Maritime/Admiralty Law / South Carolina / Summary Judgment
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Valve Manufacturer’s Summary Judgment Denied in Failure to Warn Case Despite Bare Metal Defense

The plaintiffs brought this action against Crane Co. alleging James Chesher developed mesothelioma as a result of exposure to asbestos containing packing and gaskets found inside Crane Co. valves while he served in the United States Navy from 1965-1989.

The court began its discussion by stating the standard for summary judgment. Summary judgment is appropriate when the “pleadings, the discovery and disclosure materials on file, and any affidavits show that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and that the movant is …

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Bare Metal/Component Parts / Case Decisions / Delaware / Maritime/Admiralty Law / Summary Judgment
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Defendants’ Motions for Summary Judgment Granted for Lack of Exposure Evidence and Opposition

The plaintiffs brought this action against multiple defendants alleging Mr. Evans developed an asbestos related disease as a result of his exposure to asbestos while serving in the U.S. Navy. Mr. Evans alleged that he worked as a fireman and boiler tender on-board the USS Kearsarge from 1957-61 and USS Bole in 1961. Mr. Evans believed that he had been exposed to asbestos from gaskets and refractory products while in the U.S. Navy. Mr. Evans also alleged that he had been exposed to brake dust …

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Bare Metal/Component Parts / Case Decisions / Delaware / Maritime/Admiralty Law / Summary Judgment
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Defendants’ Motions for Summary Judgment Granted for Plaintiffs’ Failure to Establish Exposure Evidence

The plaintiff alleged he developed mesothelioma as a result of his exposure to asbestos while working with the U.S. Navy from 1961-64 and from 1961-78 with various employers. Defendant Crane Co. removed the case to the U.S. District Court on August 31, 2015. Defendants CBS Corporation, Goodyear Tire and Rubber, FMC Corporation, and Ingersoll Rand moved for summary judgment. The plaintiff filed no opposition to those motions.

The court began its analysis with the standard for summary judgment. Summary judgment is appropriate when there is …

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Bare Metal/Component Parts / Case Decisions / Louisiana / Summary Judgment
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Federal Court Outlines Alternative Standard to Bare Metal Defense

William Bell alleged routine exposure to asbestos while serving as an engine man, machinery repairman, and a machinist mate in the United States Navy in the 1960s. Bell further alleged he was exposed to asbestos both while serving at sea on four ships as well as while training at a land-based Navy facility in Idaho. After being diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2015, Bell sued various companies that manufactured a wide range of products including pumps, valves, condensers, compressors, and turbines located on the Navy vessels …

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Bare Metal/Component Parts / Case Decisions / Pennsylvania
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Federal Court Rejects Argument That Manufacturer Cannot Be Liable for Asbestos-Containing Component Parts

The plaintiffs filed suit in the Court of Common Pleas, First Judicial District, Philadelphia County, against various defendants claiming that the decedent, who had been employed since the 1950s as a millwright in multiple power plants and steel mill factories, developed work-related malignant mesothelioma from exposure to asbestos and to products containing asbestos.

This state action was ultimately removed to federal court and became part of Multidistrict Litigation-875 in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Here, the plaintiffs specifically alleged that defendant Crane Co. manufactured, produced, …

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Bare Metal/Component Parts / Case Decisions
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Manufacturers of Generators, Turbines and Boilers Granted Summary Judgment on Bare Metal Defense

The plaintiffs brought this action against several defendants for alleged exposure to asbestos and development of mesothelioma while working as a ship fitter at several shipyards from approximately 1964 until 2014. Defendants Cummins, CBS, and Foster Wheeler moved for summary judgment. Specifically, the plaintiff alleged that he rolled out amosite and cut it with an electric knife to make A-Cloth pads at the shipyards. He also stated that he had insulated various pieces of equipment including turbines, boilers, and generators. As to the defendants, Malone …

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Bare Metal/Component Parts / Case Decisions / Delaware / Summary Judgment
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Various Manufacturers Granted Summary Judgment Under Mississippi Law, Including Acceptance of Bare Metal Defense

The plaintiff, Robert Lee Winhauer, commenced this action alleging asbestos exposure from his personal work on his automobiles from the 1940s through the 1990s, from his work at the Ingalls Shipyard in Pascagoula, Mississippi from 1965 to 1976 and while working at Courtaulds North America Rayon Staple Plant in Le Moyne, Alabama from 1977 to 1998. Nine defendants, John Crane, John Crane Inc. (JCI), Flowserve US Inc., Carver Pump Co. , Sterling Fluid Systems (USA) LLC, FMC Corp., Velan Valve Corp., Borg-Warner (D.I. 173), and …

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Bare Metal/Component Parts / Case Decisions / Summary Judgment
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Lack of Evidence of Asbestos Replacement Parts Supplied by Crane for Use in Crane Valves Key to Granting of Summary Judgment

The decedent died of mesothelioma; prior to his passing he filed a lawsuit in state court alleging exposure to asbestos while a production shift supervisor during his employment at a paper mill in Georgia. One defendant removed, and the action was transferred to MDL 875. Defendant Crane Co. filed for summary judgment, which was granted in part by the MDL court; however, it remanded to the Northern District of Georgia to determine whether the bare metal defense was available under Georgia law. Crane then moved …

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Bare Metal/Component Parts / Case Decisions
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MDL 875 Clarifies That Absent Sufficient Exposure, Bare Metal Defense Applied in Maritime Law Bars Negligence and Strict Product Liability Claims

In January 2013, this case was removed on the basis of federal question jurisdiction and assigned to MDL 875. The plaintiffs alleged asbestos exposure while serving in the Navy. Applying maritime law, the court granted summary judgments filed by Buffalo Pumps, CBS Corporation, Foster Wheeler, General Electric, IMO Industries, and Warren Pumps, based upon the bare metal defense. The plaintiffs appealed and the Third Circuit remanded the case to the MDL court to clarify whether it: (1) considered the negligence theory of liability; (2) concluded …

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