Category: Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania / Summary Judgment
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Court Grants Summary Judgment to Turbine Defendants Finding Manufactures Entitled to Bare-Metal Defense

United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, April 1, 2022

The decedent’s widow brought this suit on behalf of the decedent alleging that the decedent’s occupational exposure to asbestos during his time in the Navy is attributable to turbines manufactured by the Westinghosue Corporation. The plaintiff also brought suit against the defendant CBS Corporation alleging CBS is a successor by merger of Westinghouse. The plaintiff also contends decedent’s injuries were caused in part by turbines manufactured by General Electric Company.

The defendant …

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Pennsylvania
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Summary Judgment Granted as Premises Owner Did Not Owe a Duty to Independent Contractor’s Employee

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, February 15, 2022

In this asbestos action, Carl Gay alleged that he developed mesothelioma after a forty-year career. From 1974 until 1976, Gay worked as a quality control supervisor for engineering company Stone & Webster at the Beaver Valley Nuclear Power Station, which was owned and operated by Duquesne Light. Duquesne Light filed a motion for summary judgment, arguing that they did not owe a duty to Gay as a landowner or as an employer of …

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Appeal / Pennsylvania / Summary Judgment
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Court Upholds Plumbing and Heating Employer’s Motion for Summary Judgment Finding No Successor-In-Interest Liability

Superior Court of Pennsylvania, January 26, 2022

In these asbestos actions, Kelly Smith, the executrix of the estate if Daniel R. Harrity, and Maxine Rosenkeimer, the executrix of the estate of Arthur W. Rosenkeimer, appeal a December 2020 order dismissing all claims and parties and an August 2020 order granting summary judgment to Appellee Vanadium Enterprises Corporation. With regard to the August 2020 order, the court concluded that the record lacked insufficient evidence to support a finding that Vanadium was liable as a successor to …

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Pennsylvania / Personal Jurisdiction
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Default Judgment Vacated by Plaintiff’s Failure to Serve Amended Complaint

U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, January 7, 2022

The plaintiff Rhonda J. Gorton filed this asbestos-related lawsuit on behalf of her husband, the decedent Thomas Gorton, alleging the decedent contracted mesothelioma as a result of his exposure to asbestos-containing products. The defendant Warren Pumps did not respond to the complaint or otherwise have counsel enter an appearance on its behalf. On or about March 6, 2018, the decedent passed away. On July 9, 2018, the plaintiff filed an amended complaint alleging …

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FELA / Pennsylvania
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Pennsylvania Supreme Court Rejects Consent Jurisdiction by Registration as Unconstitutional

Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, December 22, 2021

On December 22, 2021, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania issued a landmark decision in the matter of Mallory v. Norfolk Southern Railway Company, holding that Pennsylvania’s general jurisdiction statute, 42 Pa.C.S. § 5301(a)(2), which conveys general jurisdiction over foreign corporations who register to do business in the Commonwealth, is unconstitutional.

In Mallory, the plaintiff, a Virginia resident, filed a Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA) action against the defendant Norfolk Southern Railway in the Philadelphia Court of …

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Pennsylvania / Pleadings Challenge
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Denial of Rail Defendant’s Forum Non Conveniens Motion Reversed on Appeal

Superior Court of Pennsylvania, December 21, 2021

The plaintiff filed a complaint against CSX Transportation, Inc. (CSXT) pursuant to the Federal Employers’ Liability Act alleging that his employment-based exposure to asbestos, diesel exhaust/fumes, and second-hand smoke either caused or contributed to the development of his colon cancer. The plaintiff worked for CSXT and its predecessors as a train brakeman and conductor beginning in 1974.

CSXT is a Virginia corporation that is headquartered in Florida. The plaintiff is a Maryland resident and worked for CSXT and …

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Pennsylvania / Summary Judgment
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Alleged Product Successor Obtains Summary Judgment on Causation and Successor Liability Grounds

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, November 4, 2021

In this asbestos action, the plaintiff alleges that the decedent, John Sullivan, was exposed to asbestos from products manufactured by Griscom Russell (Viad’s alleged predecessor) while serving in the U.S. Navy from 1967 to 1980. Viad moved for summary judgment on two grounds. First, Viad argued that the plaintiff has not shown that any product for which Viad is allegedly responsible caused Sullivan’s injuries. The court analyzed this argument pursuant to maritime law, …

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Bare Metal/Component Parts / Pennsylvania / Summary Judgment
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Turbine Defendants Obtain Summary Judgment Under the DeVries Bare Metal Defense Test

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, July 7, 2021

The plaintiffs alleged that John DeVries was exposed to asbestos from insulation associated with steam turbines on the U.S.S. Turner. The Asbestos Case Tracker has continuously covered the DeVries matter’s journey to the United States Supreme Court, and has covered DeVries in a comprehensive synopsis of The State of the Bare Metal Defense. The Supreme Court established a new bare metal defense standard and remanded the matter back to the United …

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Pennsylvania / Summary Judgment
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Defendants’ MSJs Granted as to Lack of Product Identification—Finds Question of Fact as to Premises Defendant

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, June 25, 2021

Plaintiff Allisa Gay brought suit against various manufacturers and distributors, alleging that her father, Carl Gay (decedent), developed mesothelioma from exposure to the defendants’ asbestos-containing products while serving in the U.S. Navy. Defendant Viking Pump, Inc. filed a motion for summary judgment, arguing that the plaintiff did not properly identify its product as a cause of the decedent’s disease and death.

Viking admits that it sold Viking Pumps to the U.S. Navy, and …

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Asbestos Litigation Analysis / Pennsylvania
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Court Grants Water Heater Defendant’s MSJ Finding Plaintiff Failed to Proffer Sufficient Exposure Evidence

United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, June 17, 2021

Plaintiff sued Defendant Yuba Heat Transfer, LLC and various manufacturers and distributors alleging that decedent developed mesothelioma from exposures to Defendant Yuba’s asbestos-containing products. Plaintiff alleged decedent was exposed to asbestos from Yuba’s feedwater heaters while working at the Niagara Mohawk Power Station. 

Prior to decedent’s passing, he sat for a deposition during which he did not identify Yuba by name or feedwater heaters.  Defendant Yuba filed a motion for summary judgment arguing …

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