LATEST INSIGHTS

Case Decisions / Missouri / Summary Judgment
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Federal Court Collaterally Estops Claims in Separate Disease Case

MISSOURI — Over a period of six years, plaintiff Berj Hovsepian filed two separate actions for two separate diseases, asbestosis and mesothelioma, arising out of his work with various products as a civilian employee of the United States Navy in Boston from 1958-1964. The current action sits in federal court, having been removed from a December 2015 case filed in state court in Missouri. The court granted defendant Ingersoll-Rand’s summary judgment motion on collateral estoppel for the reasons discussed below.

In December of 2009, Hovsepian …

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Case Decisions / Louisiana / Remand/Removal
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Plaintiff’s Motion to Remand to State Court Denied After Court Finds Federal Jurisdiction under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act

LOUISIANA — On June 16, 2017, plaintiff Federico Lopez filed suit against 15 defendants, claiming that his exposure to asbestos as a welder and pipefitter at numerous locations caused his mesothelioma.  Defendants Shell Oil Company and Tennessee Gas Pipeline, LLC, removed the action, invoking federal subject matter jurisdiction pursuant to the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA), 43 U.S.C. Section 1349(b), and alternatively, pursuant to federal question jurisdiction, 28 U.S.C. Section 1331.  Further, the defendants contended that the court had supplemental jurisdiction over the plaintiff’s …

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Case Decisions / Federal Officer Removal / Louisiana
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Remand Granted After Finding that Government Did Not Direct Safety Operations of Shipyard Defendant

LOUISIANA — The plaintiffs brought this action against several defendants including Huntington Ingalls (Ingalls) alleging that their decedent, Tyrone Melancon, was exposed to asbestos for which the defendants were liable. The plaintiffs asserted that Melancon developed mesothelioma from exposure to asbestos while working at the Avondale Shipyard from 1965-2002.

Ingalls. along with others, removed the case to U.S. District Court on federal officer removal. The plaintiffs moved for remand arguing that defendants were not entitled to such removal. According to the court, removal under federal …

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Other Asbestos News
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U.S. Supreme Court Denies Appeal of Former Speaker of New York State Senate; Stage Set for Retrial

NEW YORK — Sheldon Silver’s appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court was denied on Tuesday, January 16, 2018. Silver appealed part of the Second Circuit’s decision overturning his convictions on corruption charges. That decision overturned Silver’s convictions citing improper jury instructions pursuant to the Supreme Court’s decision in U.S. v. McDonald. Silver’s appeal centered on the money laundering charge. For that charge, he argued that a split exists among federal appeals courts as to the prosecutorial requirement linking a transaction to the suspected crime. …

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Case Decisions / Missouri / Personal Jurisdiction
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Plaintiffs’ Motion for Reconsideration of Dismissals Based Upon Lack of Personal Jurisdiction Denied

MISSOURI — On June 27, 2017, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri granted several defendants’ motions to dismiss based upon a lack of personal jurisdiction. The plaintiffs subsequently filed a motion to reconsider due to an intervening change in the law, specifically the U.S. Supreme Court’s Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) opinion issued on June 19, 2017. The court noted that such motions, filed pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 59, cannot be used to raise arguments which could have been raised …

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Case Decisions / Federal Officer Removal / Remand/Removal
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Removal Under Federal Officer Removal Statute Held to Begin on Date of Receipt of Deposition Transcript

On February 23, 2017, the plaintiff filed a complaint against Avondale Shipyards, and numerous other defendants, alleging he suffered mesothelioma from his employment at Avondale. The plaintiff was deposed over eight days from March 9 to April 13, 2017. He was cross-examined by counsel for Avondale on March 10 and 20, 2017. On March 28, 2017, counsel for Avondale received a link to the deposition transcript. Avondale removed the matter on the basis of federal officer jurisdiction on April 27, 2017, 30 days following receipt …

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Case Decisions / Federal Officer Removal / Maryland / Remand/Removal
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Denial of Remand When Removal Under Federal Officer Removal Statute Deemed Timely

MARYLAND — The plaintiff filed her lawsuit in the Circuit Court for Baltimore County on June 5, 2015, alleging the decedent was exposed to asbestos at Bethlehem Steel Sparrows Point Shipyard as a riveter heater and boiler maker from 1948 through the 1970s. A co-worker was deposed on December 11, 2015, and testified that decedent was exposed to asbestos from Foster Wheeler products while building ships for the Vietnam War. Foster Wheeler removed the case base on the Federal Officer Removal Statute to the U.S. …

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Documents and Resources
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Asbestos Case Tracker — 2017 Compendium

With reported asbestos decisions continuing to rise, the need to keep informed on developments across the country is imperative.

Goldberg Segalla’s Asbestos Case Tracker blog — ranked on the ABA Journal Blawg 100 list of the best legal blogs — is the go-to resource for up-to-date asbestos decisions happening in courts throughout the United States. Our blog also reports on legislative updates, significant verdicts, and other critical developments in the asbestos area. We provide summaries of and access to decisions, along with insightful commentary from …

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Case Decisions / Louisiana / Statute of Limitations
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Plaintiffs’ Asbestos-Related Claims Time-Barred Due to Prior Settlement Agreement

LOUISIANA — Plaintiffs-Appellants are the widow and surviving children of Raymond J. Lemieux, Sr.. Mr. Lemieux, Sr. worked for Johns-Manville in Marrero, Louisiana from 1956 to 1970 during which time he wore a respirator designed by American Optical, Defendant-Appellee. Raymond, Sr. developed asbestos-related lung cancer, which eventually caused his death in 2015; prior to his death, he filed suit in 2011 against American Optical stemming from his use of their respirator. Represented by his attorney, Raymond, Sr. entered into settlement negotiations with American Optical. The …

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Case Decisions / Pennsylvania / Single Fiber, Cumulative Exposure
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Superior Court Affirms Five Post-Trial Rulings, Remands to Trial Court for Apportionment Under Pennsylvania Fair Share Act

PENNSYLVANIA — Appellee William Roverano initially filed suit in 2014 against multiple defendants, alleging that his lung cancer was caused by exposure to asbestos while employed by PECO between 1971-81. Appellee Jacqueline Roverano also made a claim for loss of consortium. More than a dozen of the named defendants had filed for bankruptcy, and only John Crane, Inc. and Brand Insulations, Inc. had not settled before the jury’s verdict. Prior to the trial, the court held that the Fair Share Act, 42 Pa.C.S. Section 7102, …

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