Category: Summary Judgment

Rhode Island / Summary Judgment
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Boiler, Burner, and Furnace Manufacturer Failed to Meet Summary Judgment Burden

Superior Court of Rhode Island, Providence, July 21, 2021

In this asbestos action, Gerard Wallace (decedent) serviced and repaired existing boilers and furnaces, performed coal-to-oil conversions, and installed new boilers and furnaces. Defendant Electrolux moved for summary judgment, arguing that the plaintiff did not adduce evidence showing that the decedent worked with or around an Electrolux or Williams Oil-O-Matic product which had original asbestos-containing components manufactured, sold, or supplied by Electrolux or Williams Oil-O-Matic. While the plaintiff attempted to argue that Rhode Island substantive law …

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Maritime/Admiralty Law / Summary Judgment / Washington
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Purifier Defendant Granted Summary Judgment as Plaintiffs Failed to Establish Causation

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, July 19, 2021

Defendant Alfa Laval filed this present amended motion for summary judgment. The plaintiffs allege the decedent, John Dale Wineland (decedent or Mr. Wineland), worked aboard a series of Navy ships including the USS Dynamic, USS Pledge, USS Loyalty, USS Tuscaloosa, and USS Esteem from 1963 to 1984, where he was exposed to asbestos from Alfa Laval products aboard these ships. The decedent worked in the engine room where he …

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Delaware / Summary Judgment
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Court Grants Valve Manufacturer’s MSJ Finding No Evidence of Exposure

U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, July 16, 2021

The plaintiffs filed this lawsuit alleging the decedent developed lung cancer and died as a result of asbestos exposure from several of the defendants’ products, including Crane Co. The decedent worked for the North Carolina Department of Administration as a plumber. He worked directly on various items, including boilers, pumps, compressors, and piping. The decedent’s brother offered testimony that the decedent worked on Crane Co. boiler steam header valves. However, he was not able …

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Appeal / Summary Judgment / Texas
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Summary Judgment Affirmed for Premises Defendant on Causation Grounds

Court of Appeals of Texas, First District, Houston, July 13, 2021

The plaintiff, Thelma Mullins, alleged that the decedent, Donald Mullins, was exposed to asbestos while working at ARCO’s petrochemical plant. The plaintiff claimed that the asbestos exposure caused the decedent to develop mesothelioma, which led to his death. The trial court granted a no-evidence summary judgment in favor of ARCO, which the plaintiff appealed.

By way of background, the plaintiff alleged that the decedent had worked at ARCO’s plant from approximately 1967 to 1983 …

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Louisiana / Summary Judgment
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Pre-Discovery Motion for Summary Judgment Denied in Shipyard Case

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, July 12, 2021

The plaintiffs alleged that the decedent, Raymond Hutchins, was exposed to asbestos while working aboard vessels owned by his employer, Lykes Bros. Steamship Company, from 1964 to 2006. Specifically, the plaintiffs alleged that Hutchins was exposed to asbestos from dockside repair work performed by the defendant, Dixie Machine Welding & Metal Works, Inc. (Dixie Machine). In support of this contention, the plaintiffs argued that Lykes Bros. was Dixie Machine’s largest customer from the …

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Summary Judgment / Texas
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Asbestos Snow Manufacturer Granted Partial Summary Judgment in its Successor-in-Interest Capacity

U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division

The plaintiffs brought suit against Novelis Corporation, arguing that decedent Larry Petrie’s mesothelioma and death were caused by exposure to the defendant’s asbestos-containing product, Snow Drift, while decorating the family Christmas tree. The decedent and his family would throw the product on the tree, and he and his siblings would have snowball fights with it. Defendant Novelis moved for summary judgment on all of the plaintiffs’ claims.

Novelis argued that it is not liable …

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California / Summary Judgment
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Summary Judgment in Favor of Oil Defendants Upheld Due to Lack of Control of Iranian Facilities

Court of Appeal of California, Second Appellate District, Division Seven, July 7, 2021

In this case, the plaintiffs brought wrongful death and survivor claims, alleging that their deceased father contracted mesothelioma through exposure to asbestos while he was an Iranian citizen working for the National Iranian Oil Company from the late 1950s to the late 1970s in facilities controlled by the defendants. The plaintiffs appealed a judgment entered by the trial court granting motions for summary judgment filed by the defendants Chevron Corporation, Chevron U.S.A. …

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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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Appeal / Georgia / Summary Judgment
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Denial of Premise Owner’s Motion for Summary Judgment Affirmed in Part and Remanded in Part on Interlocutory Appeal

Court of Appeals of Georgia, First Division, June 30, 2021

The plaintiff, Colen Campbell, alleged asbestos exposure from his work removing and installing insulation at a nuclear power plant owned by Georgia Power in the 1970s. The plaintiff was employed as an independent contractor by North Brothers. The defendant, Georgia Power, filed a motion for summary judgment arguing that (1) there was no duty owed to the plaintiff because it had ceded possession and control of the plant to North Brothers, (2) the testimony of …

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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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