Asbestos Case Tracker

LATEST INSIGHTS

January 18, 2017 • Asbestos Case Tracker, Legislative Updates, New York

Proposed New York Bill Seeks Fairness in Asbestos Litigation by Requiring Claimant to File All Asbestos Trust Claims Within 45 Days of Commencement of Civil Action

A recent proposed New York Bill seeks fairness in asbestos civil litigation. SB2511, sponsored by Senator Jon J. Bonacic and co-sponsored by Senator John A. DeFrancisco, aims to bring transparency to asbestos litigation by requiring plaintiffs to file asbestos trust claim forms within 45 days of filing a civil asbestos action. After the recent decision …

January 17, 2017 • Asbestos Case Tracker, Case Decisions, New Jersey, Summary Judgment

New Jersey Court Finds Plaintiff’s Certification Speculative and Grants Defendant’s Summary Judgment Motion

Plaintiff John Burton filed suit in the Superior Court of New Jersey, Middlesex County, against various defendants, including Ingersoll Rand, alleging he developed mesothelioma from occupational exposure to asbestos during his work at a New Jersey facility that manufactured aluminum cans. During his discovery deposition, Burton testified that the production of aluminum cans required a …

January 13, 2017 • Asbestos Case Tracker, Case Decisions, Expert Challenges, Single Fiber, Cumulative Exposure, State>Kentucky

Kentucky Appellate Court Rejects “Any Exposure” Causation Theory

In September of 2012, William Stallings filed suit in Kentucky state court against Georgia Pacific and other manufacturers of the asbestos containing products he had been exposed to decades earlier, seeking punitive damages under theories of strict liability and negligence. Specifically, Stallings was diagnosed with mesothelioma allegedly caused by his four years of Naval Service, …

January 13, 2017 • Asbestos Case Tracker, Case Decisions, Florida, Personal Jurisdiction, Remand/Removal, State, State>Florida

Federal Court Denies Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss on Jurisdiction Without Prejudice

On September 26, 2016, Plaintiff Marc Killam filed suit in the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit in and for Hilsborough County, Florida against various defendants after learning of his asbestosis diagnosis. Killam alleged he was exposed to asbestos through his Naval Service, from 1973-77 aboard the USS McCandless while at sea and in the Philadelphia Navy Yard. …

January 12, 2017 • Asbestos Case Tracker, Case Decisions, New Jersey, Personal Jurisdiction

Motion to Dismiss on Lack of Jurisdiction Denied as Limited Discovery is Required

On October 28, 2015, the plaintiff, Estelle Grimes, widow of plaintiff-decedent Thomas Grimes, brought suit against the defendants and numerous other corporations who also allegedly mined, sold, or distributed asbestos in New Jersey state court. On December 1, 2015, the case was removed from state to federal court. The plaintiff amended the complaint on August …

January 12, 2017 • Asbestos Case Tracker, Case Decisions, New York, Verdict Reduction

Appellate Court Reverses Trial Court’s Directed Verdict in NYCAL

On August 29, 2014, Judge Barbara Jaffe entered an order granting defendant Consolidated Edison’s (Con Edison) post-trial motion to set aside a verdict against it and direct that judgment be entered in its favor. Upon appeal, the Supreme Court of New York, Appellate Division, First Department, issued an a decision on January 10, 2017. The …

January 11, 2017 • Asbestos Case Tracker, Case Decisions, Maritime/Admiralty Law, State>Delaware, Summary Judgment

No Error in Recommendation of Summary Judgment Where Plaintiffs Failed to Establish Causation

Summary Judgment was recommended by the magistrate for the plaintiffs’ failure to establish causation in this case. The plaintiff appealed and contended that his asbestos related disease was a result of exposure to asbestos from Foster Wheeler boilers while working onboard the USS Gridley. The court noted that the standard of review of a magistrate’s …

January 10, 2017 • Asbestos Case Tracker, Case Decisions, Federal Officer Removal, Florida, State, State>Florida

Crane Asserted a Colorable Federal Defense to Establish Jurisdiction Under Federal Officer Removal Statute

The plaintiff sued various defendants for negligence, strict liability, and fraudulent inducement. Crane removed to federal court under the federal officer removal statute, and plaintiff moved to remand. The court denied this motion. To remove under Section 1442(a)(1) the defendant must qualify as a “person” under the federal officer removal statute, must act under the …

January 10, 2017 • Asbestos Case Tracker, Case Decisions, Motions in Limine, New York

Various Rulings in NYCAL Case Regarding Defendants’ Motion in Limine to Preclude Certain Evidence

The plaintiff alleged asbestos exposure through his work as a roofer, maintenance man, and carpenter. The defendants submitted a joint motion in limine to preclude certain evidence. The court issued various rulings, summarized below. First, the defendants asserted that Dr. Jacqueline Moline would offer a scientifically unsupportable causation opinion that every occupational exposure was a …

January 9, 2017 • Asbestos Case Tracker, General

National Forum on Asbestos Claims and Litigation

On Thursday, January 12, 2017, Joseph J. Welter, partner and chair of Goldberg Segalla’s Toxic Tort and Environmental Practice Group, will be speaking at ACI’s Asbestos Claims and Litigation Conference in Philadelphia. This is ACI’s 22nd National Forum on Asbestos Claims and Litigation and will feature several topics, including: Insurer-counsel-insured relationships: strategy between client, carrier, …