South Carolina Archives - Asbestos Case Tracker

September 4, 2024 South Carolina / Verdict

South Carolina Jury Returns $63.4M Plaintiff Verdict in Talc Trial

Court: Circuit Court of South Carolina, Fifth Judicial Circuit

A South Carolina jury Aug. 16 returned a $64.4 million plaintiff’s verdict against product manufacturer Johnson & Johnson and supplier American International Industries.

Plaintiff Michael L. Perry filed a lawsuit against numerous defendants, alleging that he developed mesothelioma from exposure to asbestos through his personal use and his family’s use of talcum powder products, as well as from his work at various hotels and through maintenance work on personal vehicles. Regarding the talc defendants, plaintiff alleged …

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Denial of Dryer Felt Manufacturer’s Motion for Judgment Notwithstanding the Verdict Affirmed

Court: Supreme Court of South Carolina

In this mesothelioma matter, the Supreme Court of South Carolina granted a writ of certiorari to review decisions of the South Carolina Court of Appeals affirming (1) the trial court’s denial of Scapa Waycross Inc.’s motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict based on the insufficiency of the evidence as to causation, (2) the trial court’s order granting a new trial nisi additur, and (3) the trial court’s denial of Scapa’s motion to reallocate pretrial settlement proceeds.

The court determined …

August 5, 2022 Appeal / South Carolina

Posted by: Elizabeth Lautenbach Adams

Judgment Against Dryer-Felt Supplier Affirmed on Appeal

Court of Appeals of South Carolina, August 3, 2022

In this asbestos action, decedent Stephen Stewart alleged exposure from working with asbestos-containing dryer felt associated with a paper machine from 1963 until 1981.

Stewart was diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma in September 2012. After settling with all other defendants, Stewart proceeded to trial against Scapa Waycross, supplier of the dryer felt to Stewart’s employer. The jury found in Stewart’s favor and awarded damages in the amount of $600,000 for the survival action, and $100,000 for …

September 8, 2021 South Carolina

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Court Denies Post-Trial Appeals of Control and Valve Defendants

Court of Appeals of South Carolina, September 1, 2021

The plaintiffs filed this action against numerous defendants, including Fisher Controls International LLC and Crosby Valve, LLC, alleging that the husband plaintiff was exposed to asbestos emanating from the defendants’ products. The plaintiffs alleged, inter alia, that (1) the defendants were strictly liable for the harm caused to the plaintiff by their products because the lack of an adequate warning or adequate use instructions rendered the design of these products defective and dangerous; (2) the defendants …

March 10, 2021 Insurance Coverage / South Carolina

Posted by: Alexandra S. Balmer

Federal Court Declines to Enjoin Receiver from Pursing Coverage Claims and Defenses in Receivership Court

U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina, March 1, 2021

The issues before the court arise from an insurance coverage action in which the parties disputed the rights and obligation of Covil under a policy allegedly issued to it and whether injuries in underlying asbestos actions are within the products and completed operations hazard of the policies, as well as the proper method for allocating injury across multiple policy years.

The action was initially filed in state court by the appointed receiver for …

October 27, 2020 South Carolina / Summary Judgment

Posted by: admin

Summary Judgment Awarded to Pipe Insulation Company Under Lohrmann Test

U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina, Columbia Division, October 26, 2020

The plaintiff alleged that the decedent, Paul Cruise, was exposed to asbestos-containing products while serving as a boiler tender in the United States Navy, and while working as an electrician at various industrial facilities from 1965 to 1980. The defendant, Covil Corporation, moved for summary judgment, arguing that the plaintiff could not show evidence of the decedent’s exposure to a Covil product. The allegations against Covil arose from Mr. Cruise’s work …

June 5, 2020 North Carolina / South Carolina

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Court Holds Law Firm May Be Alter-Ego of Defunct Company

In October 2018, a jury in a federal district court in North Carolina granted a judgment in excess of $30 million against Covil Corporation, a company that formerly manufactured products containing asbestos but has been defunct since 1993. By the time the North Carolina litigation commenced, Covil had no officers, directors, agents, or employees. As a result, the litigation was directed by Covil’s insurers. After the jury verdict was handed down, a receiver for Covil was appointed in South Carolina.

In an effort to collect …

October 7, 2019 Kentucky / New Jersey / South Carolina

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Talc Verdicts Remain a Mixed Bag in Second Half of 2019

In May 2019, we reported on the state of talc litigation following eye-popping verdicts in Missouri in July 2018 that saw Johnson & Johnson hit with $550 million in compensatory damages and over $4 billion dollars in punitive damages in 22 consolidated ovarian cancer cases. With hundreds of mesothelioma cases pending, alleging exposure to asbestos-contaminated talc and enormous damages potentially at stake, a further update is warranted. The last five months have seen several verdicts, and while it’s clear that talc asbestos cases are defensible, …

May 22, 2019 South Carolina

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Jury Finds Johnson and Johnson not Liable for Causing Peritoneal Mesothelioma in Talc Case

South Carolina – A Richland County jury found Johnson and Johnson (J&J) not liable in a South Carolina peritoneal mesothelioma case. The plaintiff Beth Anee Johnson alleged that her and her mother’s use of J&J baby powder over the course of two decades caused her disease.

J&J attempted to move the case to Delaware to consolidate it with thousands of other cases. However, the case was remanded to South Carolina state court after a finding that the plaintiffs would suffer an injustice since trial was …

February 14, 2019 Other Asbestos News / South Carolina

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$14 Million Verdict Upheld Against Chemical Plant Defendant

SOUTH CAROLINA — A $14 million verdict against Celanese Corporation was upheld on appeal in the mesothelioma case of 70 year old deceased the plaintiff Dennis Seay. Seay did maintenance and repair work in a Celanese plant as a contractor for Daniel Construction for nine years in the 1970s. In 2015, a South Carolina jury found that Celanese was negligent in running the plant and awarded Seay $12 million dollars in compensatory damages and $2 million dollars in punitive damages.

The appellate court disagreed with …