Category: Summary Judgment

Case Decisions / Choice of Law / Rhode Island / Statute of Repose / Summary Judgment
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Rhode Island Court Applies Maine Law to Deny Summary Judgment to Insulation Contractor

The plaintiffs alleged negligence and breach of warranty based upon asbestos exposure sustained by decedent during his work at various job sites through the Laborer’s Union from 1969-1990. Defendant New England Insulation Company (NEI) filed a motion for summary judgment based upon various theories, which the court denied.

During his deposition, the decedent testified that he worked as a laborer for general contractors at job sites in Maine.  From 1973-1976 he worked at International Paper Mill around other trades, such as pipefitters and insulators. His …

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Case Decisions / Rhode Island / Summary Judgment
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Summary Judgment Granted to Valve Manufacturer Based on Insufficient Evidence of Exposure

The plaintiff filed suit in the Superior Court of Rhode Island, Providence for personal injuries and wrongful death alleging plaintiff’s decedent use of asbestos products with defendant’s valves were foreseeable to the defendant and, under a negligence theory, the defendant failed to warn of the associated hazards.

The defendant moved for summary judgment under Maine Law, to which both parties agreed upon, on November 16, 2016, and argued that the plaintiff failed to offer, and have no reasonable expectation of offering any evidence that plaintiff’s …

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Case Decisions / Missouri / Summary Judgment
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Collateral Estoppel Applied to Bar Second Asbestos Case Against Crane by Same Plaintiff

The decedent, a civilian employee for the United States Navy from 1958-1964, died from mesothelioma. Prior to passing he brought suit in St. Louis City, Missouri, in December 2015, which the defendants removed to federal court. His representatives continued the suit after he passed. Defendant Crane Co. filed a motion to dismiss based upon collateral estoppel. The court granted this motion.

In December 2009, the decedent brought an action against Crane and others in Massachusetts based upon asbestosis. Crane filed a motion for summary judgment …

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Bare Metal/Component Parts / Case Decisions / Louisiana / Summary Judgment
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Summary Judgment Granted as to Two Defendants and Denied for Several Others in Bare Metal Defense Case

The plaintiffs brought this action against several defendants for their decedent’s alleged development of mesothelioma while working aboard ships as an engine man, machinery repairman, and machinist mate.

The defendants moved for summary judgment again after the court announced it would not adopt the Sixth Circuit’s version of the bare metal defense. The court concluded that “the bare metal defense should immunize only a narrower range of conduct.”

Summary Judgment is appropriate when the court determines that there is no genuine dispute as to material …

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Case Decisions / Louisiana / Maritime/Admiralty Law / Summary Judgment
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Pain and Suffering Damages Found as Pecuniary Under Maritime Law; Summary Judgment Granted in Part and Denied in Part

The defendants moved for summary judgment arguing that the plaintiff, John Bell, lacked standing to pursue a wrongful death or survival action under the Death on the High Seas Act (DOHSA). Specifically, the defendants relied on the language in DOHSA, which stated that “when death of an individual is caused by wrongful act, neglect, or default occurring on the high seas beyond 3 nautical miles from the shore of the United States, the personal representative of the decedent may bring a civil action” and the …

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California / Case Decisions / Summary Judgment
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Lack of Factual Basis for Plaintiffs’ Assertion of Causation Yields Grant of Summary Judgment

After the decedent died of mesothelioma, her husband and adult son filed a wrongful death and survivorship complaint against numerous defendants. W.W. Henry Company, predecessor to the Henry Company (who was also named and not a party to this motion) filed a motion for summary judgment based upon lack of exposure. The appellate court affirmed the trial court’s granting of this motion.

The plaintiffs alleged exposure to asbestos from the early 1970s-early 1980s during the decedent’s work as an art teacher and sculptor, and from …

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Case Decisions / Delaware / Summary Judgment
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Federal Court Grants Summary Judgment for Automotive Defendant for Lack of Causation

Plaintiffs Stephen and Marilyn Charlevoix brought this asbestos-related action against various defendants, including Fiat Allis North America, on July 10, 2015, in the Delaware Supreme Court. They alleged that Stephen Charlevoix developed mesothelioma as a result of naval and occupational exposure to asbestos between 1961 and 1978. During this time, Charlevoix worked as boiler tender, maintenance worker, and equipment installer. Charlevoix also ran his own logging business from the late 1960s up until the filing of the lawsuit at issue. The case was removed to …

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Case Decisions / Delaware / Maritime/Admiralty Law / Summary Judgment
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Magistrate Judge Recommends Granting Summary Judgment to Four Defendants Due to Lack of Evidence

A report and recommendation was made regarding four summary judgment motions filed by defendants Gardner Denver, Flowserve, Atwood & Morrill Company, and Nash Engineering. The plaintiffs did not respond to any of the motions for summary judgment. The magistrate judge recommended granting all four motions.

The plaintiffs originally filed in Delaware state court, alleging that Icom Henry Evans developed mesothelioma due to asbestos exposure while a fireman and boiler tender with the U.S. Navy from 1957-1967. Foster Wheeler removed to federal court. The only fact …

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Case Decisions / New York / Summary Judgment
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New York Court Finds No Successor Liability and Grants Defendant’s Summary Judgment Motion

In this NYCAL asbestos action, plaintiff Ivette Montanez alleged that she developed malignant mesothelioma as the result of washing her brother’s laundry. Montanez’s brother, Eliud Hernandez, Jr., testified to working with Beck/Arnley brakes at a friend’s automobile ship in Puerto Rico when he was 15-17 years old. Defendant Beck Arnley Worldparts, Inc. moved for summary judgment, arguing, among other things, that it was not the successor to the product alleged to have caused the exposure.

The key issue to this motion centered on successor liability …

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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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