Category: Summary Judgment

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Experts / Summary Judgment / Utah
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Exclusion of Dr. Staggs’ Specific Causation Opinion Entitles Automotive Defendant to Summary Judgment

Court: United States District Court for the District of Utah

This case arises out of decedent John C. Riegler’s diagnosis of mesothelioma, which plaintiff alleges stems from decedent’s work at a service station, including the performance of brake services. Plaintiff alleges defendants’ automotive-friction products exposed decedent to asbestos and caused his mesothelioma. Before the court are three motions to exclude expert testimony and one motion for summary judgment.

Plaintiff designated industrial hygienist William M. Ewing as an expert in this matter. In his expert report, …

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Louisiana / Summary Judgment
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Shipyard Defendant Granted Partial Summary Judgment on Plaintiff’s Non-Employee Exposure Claims

United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana

From 1972 to 1975, plaintiff Frank P. Ragusa Jr. operated a cherry picker at Avondale Shipyards as an employee of Huntington Ingalls, Inc. He then worked at Avondale for a second stint in the late 1980s as a Pauline Management (JP & Sons) employee. The plaintiff received a mesothelioma diagnosis and filed suit in July 2021, alleging asbestos exposure from the friction materials present inside the cranes he operated in 1989.

Avondale Shipyards moved for …

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Causation / Motion to Renew / Summary Judgment
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Engine Company’s Motion to Renew Summary Judgment on Causation Grounds Denied

Supreme Court of New York, Nassau County

Defendant Perkins Engine, Inc. moved to renew a court order denying its motion for summary judgment. A motion for leave to renew or reargue is based on new facts not offered on the prior motion that would change the prior determination, and reasonable justification for the failure to present such facts on the prior motion.

The court had denied Perkins’ motion, finding that it failed to meet its initial burden on summary judgment by including expert support. That …

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Courtroom, Gavel And Law Books
Louisiana / Summary Judgment
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Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment under Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act Granted

Court: United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana

Plaintiff Frank P. Ragusa Jr. filed an asbestos-related lawsuit in Civil District Court for the Parish of Orleans alleging he was exposed to asbestos in 1972, and from 1975 to 1976, while working at the Avondale Shipyard. He alleged that as a result of his occupational exposure to asbestos he developed mesothelioma.

Defendant Avondale moved for summary judgment, seeking dismissal of the plaintiff’s claims as barred and preempted by the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ …

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New York / Punitive Damages / Summary Judgment
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Boiler Manufacturer Partial Motions for Summary Judgment on Punitive Damages Denied

Court: Supreme Court of New York, New York County (NYCAL)

In these asbestos actions, defendant Burnham LLC moved for partial summary judgment seeking the dismissal of the plaintiffs’ punitive damage claims, arguing the plaintiffs failed to establish that Burnham’s conduct rose to the level of egregious and morally culpable conduct necessary for the award of punitive damages.  

In the first matter, plaintiff Frank Passanisi worked as a painter from 1966 to 1986. He alleged exposure to asbestos from Burnham boilers from performing work on …

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Mesothelioma
Summary Judgment / Washington
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Lack of Causation Entitles Valve/Gasket Defendants to Summary Judgment

Court: United States District Court for the Western District of Washington

This case arises out of the death of decedent Thomas Deem from mesothelioma, which the plaintiff alleges was caused by the decedent’s exposure to asbestos through his work as a machinist at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard. The court previously dismissed the plaintiff’s claims against numerous defendants, and only three defendants remain, each of whom has motions for summary judgment pending before the court.

Each remaining defendant’s primary defense to the plaintiff’s claims is …

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New York / Summary Judgment
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Defendant’s “Conclusory” Affidavit Not Enough to Meet Burden on Summary Judgment

Court: Supreme Court of New York, New York County

In this asbestos-related lawsuit, defendant, Perkins Engines, filed a motion for summary judgment arguing that plaintiff could not have used its brakes, clutches, or gasoline engine gaskets. In support of its motion, defendant proffered the affidavit of Kevin Klein, a technical coordinator in Litigation Technical Support for Caterpillar Inc. Klein asserted the defendant never manufactured, designed, or distributed any brakes or clutches, and that it supplied gaskets only for diesel engines. According to the defendant, partial …

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Louisiana / Summary Judgment
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Inconsistent Testimony Not Sufficient to Preclude Summary Judgment for Employer Defendant

Court: Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Fourth Circuit

In this fact-specific case, the plaintiff alleged the decedent Joyce Allen was exposed to asbestos through her husband, Odell Allen, who worked as a longshoreman and freight handler for various employers on the New Orleans riverfront from the 1960s to the 1980s. Defendant Ports America filed a motion for summary judgment, asserting there was no evidence Allen was exposed to asbestos while employed by Ports America. In support of its motion, Ports America submitted depositions of its …

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Expert Testimony / New Jersey / Summary Judgment
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Defendant Obtains Summary Judgment Due to Inadmissible Expert Testimony

Court: Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division

Decedent Joseph Murray worked for the defendant Consolidated Rail Corporation (Conrail) from 1976 to 2011 as a brakeman/conductor. His wife filed a wrongful death and survival action citing the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA), 45 U.S.C. §§ 51-60, and the Locomotive Inspection Act, 49 U.S.C. §§ 20701-20703. The plaintiff alleged that decedent had been exposed to harmful amounts of asbestos and various fumes while working for Conrail and that his lung cancer, tongue cancer, and subsequent death …

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Mesothelioma
Summary Judgment
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Summary Judgment to Navy Pump and Valve Manufacturers Overturned on Appeal

Superior Court of Pennsylvania

This case involved a deceased mesothelioma claimant, Thomas Korol, who alleged that he was exposed to asbestos while serving as a fireman and fireman’s apprentice aboard the U.S.S. Dahlgren from 1961 to 1963. Mr. Korol died prior to being deposed and, as such, the plaintiffs had to rely on three fact witnesses who were deposed regarding their time spent on the U.S.S. Dahlgren, allegedly at the same time as Mr. Korol. One of the fact witnesses recalled working with Mr. …

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