Real-Time Court Decisions and Other Developments in Asbestos Litigation.
U.S. District Court E.D. of Louisiana, March 4, 2020 LOUISIANA – The decedent, James Leoma Gaddy, filed a petition for damages against various defendants on Sept. 21, 2018 in the Civil District Court for the Parish of Orleans. It is alleged that the decedent was exposed to asbestos while working at International Paper from 1948 …
United States Bankruptcy Court, D. Maryland. March 02, 2020 The plaintiffs were various entities who filed for bankruptcy protection under Chapter 11 in 2001. Their bankruptcy confirmation order set a bar date for the filing of claims by creditors against the entities. Nearly 16 years later, asbestos claimants filed claims for exposure to asbestos in Pennsylvania. …
A string of recent decisions on remand motions illustrates that diversity challenges are alive and well in asbestos litigation. As the landscape of defendants changes as trial approaches, so do the defenses. Whether by settlement or dismissal, the remaining defendant or defendants have taken advantage of diversity issues to remove cases to more favorable federal …
United States District Court, M.D. North Carolina, February 28, 2020 United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina recently denied a dryer felt defendant’s motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction. The plaintiffs filed a lawsuit after William Brock was employed as an electrician and maintenance worker at RJ Reynolds Tobacco …
United States District Court, E.D. North Carolina, February 25, 2020 NORTH CAROLINA – The plaintiff, Belinda Foushee filed a claim with North Carolina Industrial Commission (NCIC) against Appalachian State University (ASU) alleging her daughter, Anneka Foushee or the decedent, contracted and died from mesothelioma as a result of her exposure to asbestos-containing products she used …
U.S. District Court, E.D. North Carolina, Northern Division, February 26, 2020 NORTH CAROLINA – On December 21, 2017, the plaintiff, Karen Cahoon filed a complaint alleging state law claims of negligence, breach of an implied warranty, failure to warn and punitive damages against, among others, the defendant, Edward Orton, Jr. Ceramic Foundation. A scheduling order …
District Court of Appeal of Florida, Third District, February 26, 2020 FLORIDA – An appeal was brought on behalf of the defendant, Union Carbide, after a second jury trial was completed and a jury verdict entered in favor of the plaintiff. The plaintiff, Paula Font, filed a wrongful death lawsuit alleging her father, Luis Torres, …
U.S. District Court C.D. of Illinois, February 25, 2020 ILLINOIS – The plaintiff sued several defendants alleging that Roy Hicks developed mesothelioma as a result of his exposure to asbestos for which the defendants were allegedly responsible. Specifically, Mr. Hicks alleged exposure to asbestos while working for the City of Bloomington, where he encountered asbestos …
United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit, February 24, 2020 LOUISIANA — Noting that its precedents concerning the scope of the Federal Officer Removal Statute were “extraordinarily confusing,” in the matter of Latiolais v. Huntington Ingalls, Inc., the Fifth Circuit has aligned itself with sister circuits and clarified the requirements to remove a case to …
CONNECTICUT – The plaintiff, Patricia Murray, alleged that the decedent was exposed to asbestos from products manufactured or marketed by multiple defendants, including CBS Corporation. The defendant filed a motion for summary judgment arguing that there was insufficient evidence from which a reasonable jury could conclude that the decedent was exposed to asbestos from CBS’s …