A defense verdict in a recent mesothelioma lawsuit in Arizona resulted from a claim alleging illness caused by asbestos in cement pipes. Cement piping produced in the U.S. and Canada for several decades beginning in the 1930s often contained a mixture of cement and asbestos fibers. The pipes were durable…
A new round of mesothelioma lawsuits in Massachusetts and surrounding states against fertilizer manufacturers may have gained new traction with a recent decision by the Superior Court of New Jersey Appellate Division reviving an asbestos wrongful death lawsuit. In Brandecker v. E.B. Mill Supply Co. et al, plaintiff filed on behalf…
BorgWarner Inc., a Michigan-based company that supplies turborcharger and emissions systems to the auto industry, recently reported a one-time charge of $411 million, which it is setting aside for future asbestos exposure liability claims. That’s according to Crain’s Detroit Business, which reports the charge resulted in a net loss in…
The New Jersey Supreme Court has expanded an earlier decision pertaining to “take-home toxic tort liability,” which is the assertion that companies can be responsible when their workers exposed to potentially harmful materials and take those materials home to their spouses. Now, in Schwartz v. Accuratus Corporation, justices ruled that…
According to a recent news feature from New Hampshire Public Radio, state and federal investigators were given a tip from a confidential informant regarding large piles of debris containing asbestos dumped outside a building in Lawrence, Massachusetts. The building is owned by one of the largest real estate developers in the state…
In January, an appeals court in California upheld the award of $1.6 million in compensatory damages and nearly $4 million in punitive damages in an asbestos injury lawsuit. That decision came following an appeal by defendants in Casey v. Kaiser Gypsum Company, Inc. following two jury trials – the first…
An asbestos tort reform bill has gained traction in Congress with approval from the majority in the U.S. House of Representatives. Luckily for those afflicted with mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases, it’s unlikely to gain enough traction to become law. Although the measure has a name that implies “fairness,” it…