On July 19, 2017, Justice Ellen Gesmer of the Appellate Division, First Department generally granted various NYCAL defendants’ order to show cause seeking a temporary stay of the implementation of a new NYCAL Case Management Order (CMO), which was issued by prior NYCAL Justice Peter Moulton. The order provides for a minor exception to the temporary stay. The order includes a briefing schedule for the motion seeking a stay of the New CMO during the pendency of the NYCAL defendants’ appeal from the NYCAL CMO …
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Plaintiffs’ Daubert Challenge Denied as Expert Disclaims Causation Expertise
Plaintiffs filed their Daubert challenge seeking exclusion of Georgia Pacific’s Certified Industrial Hygienist, Donald Marano. Plaintiff argued that Mr. Marano would offer qualitative and quantitative exposures of Plaintiff along with the risk and causation of Mr. Arbogast’s mesothelioma. Georgia Pacific countered with the position that Mr. Marano has “repeatedly disclaimed any expertise on causation and has confined his opinion to explaining the risk assessments performed by various agencies and organizations and offering his risk assessment opinion based on the analysis that his profession is trained …
Continue ReadingExclusion of Plaintiffs’ Causation Experts Leads to Granting of Summary Judgment
Plaintiffs filed suit against Georgia Pacific (“GP”) and Union Carbide Corporation (“UCC”) alleging Mr. Rockman’s peritoneal mesothelioma was caused by exposure to asbestos for which both Defendants were responsible. Specifically, Mr. Rockman claimed “bystander” exposure to GP’s Ready Mix joint compound that contained UCC’s Calidria chrysotile asbestos during residential renovations in 1965, 1973 and 1976. Plaintiff stated that he was exposed during his time living in a Brooklyn apartment when a ceiling was repaired in 1965, again in 1973 during wall repair in Baltimore, MD …
Continue ReadingPlaintiff Failure to Establish Retailer’s Knowledge of Danger of Asbestos Leads to Summary Judgment
Plaintiffs brought this suit against multiple defendants for Mr. Glaser’s alleged asbestos related injuries. Scott Glaser alleged that he was exposed to asbestos floor tile sold by Sears and Roebuck (“Sears”) while working for various employers. His work required him to clean up “scraps or pieces of floor tile off the floor.” Defendant took the position that it was a retailer and never “mined, milled, processed, or distributed wholesale asbestos containing products.” The Court noted that under Michigan law for a products liability action, a …
Continue ReadingSummary Judgment Denied Upon Showing that Defendant’s Boilers Contained Asbestos Gaskets and Rope
Plaintiff Clarence Dionne filed suit against several defendants including Cleaver Brooks alleging that he was exposed to asbestos while working at the Bay Area Medical Facility. Plaintiff alleged that he “scraped off the rope gaskets and supervised this task” on the doors of Defendant’s boilers. Not only did he personally perform this work but he also supervised others in the process. After a promotion in 1975, he took on the task of ordering replacement parts through his secretary. The replacement gaskets and insulation were supplied …
Continue ReadingSummary Judgment Granted upon Plaintiff’s Failure to Establish Replacement Parts Supplied by Valve Defendant
Plaintiff brought this action against several defendants including Fairbanks Company alleging exposure to asbestos while working with Defendant’s valves. Specifically, Plaintiff recalled working with globe, gate and ball valves for various employers and locations. Plaintiff also testified that he replaced packing in the valves and personally removed external insulation to repair the valves. Plaintiff assumed that the packing he encountered contained asbestos based on the high heat application of the equipment.
Fairbanks argued that no evidence pointed to it having made asbestos packing Plaintiff encountered. …
Continue ReadingPlaintiff Fails to Demonstrate Decedent Worked with Boiler Manufacture’s Product; Summary Judgment Granted
Dorothy Charbonneau filed suit in the Superior Court of Delaware against multiple defendants alleging the defendants’ use of asbestos caused her husband, Robert Charbonneau, to contract an asbestos related disease. Mr. Charbonneau testified that he believed he was exposed to asbestos while maintaining and cleaning multiple boilers manufactured by Cleaver-Brooks throughout his employment career. Mr. Charbonneau also testified that he removed a sectional boiler during employment with Smith Mechanical. He testified that the boiler may have been Cleaver-Brooks but stated that he believed this because …
Continue ReadingSeeking Your Nomination
Attention blog readers! This year, the ABA Journal is publishing their first ever “Web 100” celebrating the best of the legal industry on the web. In order to be named to the list, we’ll need your help! Since the start of our blog in October of 2015, Asbestos Case Tracker has reported on hundreds of asbestos decisions and has been hailed as the go-to resource for up-to-date asbestos decisions happening in courts throughout the United States. Our blog reports nearly daily on legislative updates, significant …
Continue ReadingWrongful Death Claims Barred by Res Judicata from Prior Loss of Consortium Case
In this wrongful death case, plaintiff Janet Stewart appealed the grant of summary judgment to Union Carbide that her loss of consortium claim was barred by res judicata. The plaintiff also argued a miscarriage of justice in the setoff of her deceased husband’s settlement with two asbestos bankruptcy trusts against her entire economic damage award. The court affirmed both rulings.
Larry Stewart worked as a plumber from 1968-2007 when he was diagnosed with mesothelioma. He and his wife filed a personal injury lawsuit (Stewart I). …
Continue ReadingVarious Rulings Issued on Motions in Limine in Trial; Plaintiffs’ Motion to Exclude Defense Experts Denied
The court issued various rulings on motions in limine filed by both the plaintiffs and defendant John Crane in this matter that is set for trial on July 17, 2017. The decedent died of mesothelioma. Many of the motions were unopposed. Below are summaries of the more pertinent rulings.
Regarding the plaintiff’s motions, the plaintiff argued that the defendant should be barred from disclosing that some corporations were in bankruptcy. The defendants opposed the motion because under Wisconsin law, any claims plaintiffs have submitted to …
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