Real-Time Court Decisions and Other Developments in Asbestos Litigation.
Plaintiff Marvin Smith alleged asbestos exposure while serving as a fireman in the U.S. Navy from 1951-54, and while working as a fireman and warehouseman at various shipyards and warehouses. The plaintiff and his wife sued various defendants in state court after he was diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma. Defendant Crane Co. removed this mesothelioma case …
The plaintiffs brought this action against multiple defendants including Foster Wheeler and Crane Co. for injuries allegedly sustained while Mr. Osterhaut served in the U.S. Navy onboard the USS Roan. Summary judgment was denied as to both Foster Wheeler and Crane. Crane filed the instant Motion for Reconsideration. The court noted that reconsideration is appropriate …
The plaintiff brought this suit against numerous defendants including Ford Motor Company. She alleged that the decedent developed and passed from mesothelioma as a result of exposure to dust from products manufactured, sold, and distributed while Mr. Bristol worked as a mechanic at a Ford dealership from 1972-1989. Ford removed the case a day after …
Carol J. Zellner, on behalf of the estate of Clifford R. Zellner, appealed the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania’s order granting summary judgment in favor of CBS Corporation to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, arguing that the district court erred in finding that she failed to establish …
On October 24, 2016, a Los Angeles County jury awarded a total of $7 million in damages to Peter J. Lamonica and his wife, Exine Lamonica, in a case where multiple defendants were found liable as the cause to Lamonica’s mesothelioma. The verdict sheet demonstrates the jury found the defendant’s negligence was a substantial factor …
The plaintiffs contended that their decedent was exposed to asbestos while working as a machinist at a shipyard owned by Electric Boat Corporation from 1962-65. At the close of discovery, a period in which several discovery motions were filed, the plaintiffs filed this motion for spoliation of evidence. The plaintiffs asserted that Electric Boat spoliated …
The plaintiffs’ brought this action against Electric Boat and General Dynamics for their decedent’s alleged development of mesothelioma as a result of his work as a machinist at the defendants’ shipyards. The plaintiffs sought depositions of the corporate representatives of both Electric Boat and General Dynamics since Electric Boat operated as a division of General …
The plaintiffs, Nolan and Susan Legeaux, brought a motion to remand their asbestos case from federal court arguing that removing defendants failed to follow the correct removal procedure, that there are non-diverse defendants, and that the federal officer removal statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1442, is not applicable to the facts of the case. The motion …
W.R. Grace & Co. (Grace), a Chapter 11 bankruptcy debtor, at one time operated a vermiculite mine, and related mining activities released asbestos-containing dust into the atmosphere. It began facing asbestos-related lawsuits in the 1970s. Grace filed a voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2001, and a plan of reorganization was confirmed in 2014. The plan …
In this negligence actions brought under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA), the Appellate Court of Illinois, Fourth District, affirmed the jury’s verdict against defendant Illinois Central Railroad Company (Central) but vacated the award of damages and remanded for a new damages hearing. In 2003, Paul McGowan was diagnosed with lung cancer and died. In …