Tobacco Articles: category asbestos

Order will impact asbestos verdicts

chris@wvrecord.com ( Chris Dickerson -Statehouse Bureau) — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 05:00:00 GMT

An order filed Wednesday will ensure asbestos plaintiffs don't get paid twice for the same alleged injuries. Circuit Judge Ronald Wilson's order essentially ensures that defendants in asbestos cases receive proper credit when plaintiffs are paid by trusts of bankrupt defendants. In asbestos cases that go to verdict, money paid by such trusts would reduce the amount of the money paid out. The order is meant to make the process of dealing with trusts of bankrupt asbestos defendants more open and to make it easier for all parties involved to see what plaintiffs in such cases told the trusts. . . . Cohn also referenced the infamous Kananian vs. Lorillard Tobacco Company case in Ohio. He has called the case "the poster-child for abuses flowing from the opaque nature of the trust claiming process." In that case, Harry Kananian claimed in he developed mesothelioma solely from smoking Lorillard's asbestos-filtered cigarettes. But he and his attorneys simultaneously filed claims with numerous asbestos trusts alleging that their products caused the disease. Despite Kananian's attorneys' attempts to hide this information, Lorillard eventually learned that these lawyers had obtained hundreds of thousands of dollars by submitting contradictory -- even bogus -- trust claims, leading the judge to revoke counsel's pro hac vice privileges. "Judge Wilson's order is good, but it still potentially allows for the gaming of the system by deferring the submissions," Cohn said of Wednesday's West Virginia order. "The problem, especially in joint and several jurisdiction, there are fewer and fewer solvent defendants. The share they might end up paying is bigger and bigger. These defendants are looking down the barrel of a gun in joint and several jurisdictions." . . .

Cancer from smoking not asbestos

Thu, 04 Mar 2010 05:00:00 GMT

The High Court has ruled a heavy longtime smoker is more likely to have died from cancer caused by cigarettes than from exposure to asbestos. Although not absolutely ruling out asbestos as the cause of Paul cotton's fatal cancer judges say it may only have contributed contributed to the death. . . . the ruling means Mr Cotton's former employers won't have to pay compensation.

UPDATED: Judge seals Coon, Umphrey arbitration award; Activist doesn't like trend

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 05:00:00 GMT

e public's concern, attorney Brent Coon - one of Texas' most colorful attorneys - had a local judge seal an arbitration award stemming from a lawsuit over asbestos attorney's fees. However, not everyone thinks the award should have been sealed. At least one First Amendment activist believes sealing court records is a "threat to the public." Over the past two years, the Southeast Texas Record has reported on the struggle between Coon and his former employer, the Provost Umphrey law firm. In a battle encompassing several courts, the parties have been warring over millions in attorney's fees from the state's mega-billion dollar tobacco settlement as well as fees flowing from asbestos litigation. On Monday, Feb. 8, Jefferson County Judge Milton Shuffield, 136th Judicial District, permanently sealed a final judgment award issued Dec. 30 by the American Arbitration Association. Judge Shuffield was not presiding over the tobacco fee dispute, but rather had been litigating a dispute between Umphrey and Coon over attorney's fees in unrelated asbestos litigation.

David M. Bernick, P.C. - Partner

david.bernick@kirkland.com ([item undated]) — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 05:00:00 GMT

For the last 25 years, David has tried unique, high-profile cases in state and federal courts across the country and in a wide variety of subject areas, including RICO, environmental crimes, fraudulent conveyance, products liability, and commercial class actions. He has been regularly recognized as one of the top trial lawyers in the country. Relatedly, he has represented domestic and foreign corporations in multijurisdictional litigation where he has worked with his clients to develop and implement overall resolution strategy, including cases involving securities fraud, consumer fraud, pharmaceutical liability, financial restructuring, and environmental contamination. David has been featured in several articles that have appeared in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Financial Times, Fortune Magazine, The American Lawyer and The National Law Journal. The following are a few representative articles: Toxic tough guy, Crain’s Chicago Business, May 25, 2009 . . . Asbestos Financial Restructuring and Litigation * Developed a Chapter 11 strategy for companies with asbestos liabilities, whereby Chapter 11 is used as a vehicle for first litigating (and ultimately resolving) asbestos liabilities. Major clients have included W.R. Grace, Babcock & Wilcox, Armstrong World Industries, ABB, CraneCo, General Motors and DaimlerChrysler. Fraudulent Conveyance/Alter Ego Litigation * Successfully defended Babcock & Wilcox at trial (2003). Now representing Imperial Tobacco of Canada in litigation relating to Flintkote Corporation. . . . Tobacco Cost Recovery and Class Action Lawsuits * Has represented (in different cases) Brown & Williamson, American Tobacco, Philip Morris, Imperial Tobacco and British American Tobacco in aggregated litigation brought by the DOJ, several states, unions, asbestos companies and insurance plans against the tobacco industry. Trials include State of Minnesota (1998), Ohio class action by union health and welfare funds (1999), Manville Asbestos Trust (2000), DOJ RICO suit (2004-2005).

McConnell tapped tobacco war chest to fund 9-year lead paint battle

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT

For nine years prospective federal judge nominee Jack McConnell battled paint makers with boundless powers he received from attorneys general he helped elect. As he awaits the nomination process, McConnell, of the Motley Rice firm in Providence, continues in his role as Rhode Island Democratic Party treasurer. Had he been successful in carrying out the mammoth lead paint abatement plan he devised in 1999, and which fell apart last year, McConnell and other lawyers would have shared hundreds of millions in fees, maybe billions. According to court records, the abatement plan would have bulldozed Rhode Island from end to end. State and federal housing laws and regulations that would forbid entering properties without warrants would have been suspended. . .. The firm identifies him as negotiator and primary drafter of the master tobacco settlement agreement of 1998. Whitehouse explained to reporters that the state wouldn't spend any money on lead abatement because Motley Rice had "a big war chest from the tobacco litigation," according to a report in the Providence Journal. "McConnell brings horses in a big way," Whitehouse said. "He's part of a great firm with very deep pockets."

09/25/2008 - Clarification of the provision banning smoking in the OSHA asbestos standards.

Thu, 25 Sep 2008 04:00:00 GMT

Dear Mr. Czehowski: This is in response to your letter to the OSHA San Francisco Regional Office, asking for clarification of a 1990 letter of interpretation regarding OSHA's asbestos standards. We understand that the State of Nevada has adopted standards identical to those of Federal OSHA and intends to follow the Federal enforcement policy. Your letter was forwarded to OSHA's national office for response . . . The employer shall ensure that employees do not smoke in work areas where they are occupationally exposed to asbestos because of activities in that work area. (emphasis added) As we explained in our 1990 letter to Mr. Sledge, the Agency determined that the health risk for smoking employees exposed to asbestos is substantially higher than nonsmoking ones. We explained in the preamble to the rule that "[t]his is an expansion of the present smoking ban, which, as in most OSHA health standards, is confined to regulated areas where exposures are elevated." (55 FR at 3726, February 5, 1990). The smoking ban in the asbestos standards does not specify a level of exposure. However, the exposure must have its source in the workplace. We have explained that this means that an employee who works in areas where there are operations that disturb asbestos, such as asbestos abatement and renovation activities, may be occupationally exposed, regardless of whether that employee disturbs or handles the asbestos.

Asbestos exposure, smoking:'a deadly combo'

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 04:00:00 GMT

The link between cigarette smoke and asbestos illness has been highlighted by a new medical research project. A project between Queensland's James Cook University and the Bulgarr Ngaru medical centre at Grafton is looking at ways to improve the health of Aboriginal people who lived or worked near asbestos mines. The research also extends to West Australia's Pilbarra region where another Aboriginal community was exposed to significant levels of asbestos. Dr Richard Murray from James Cook says the focus on financial compensation has quashed important health messages that communities need to hear.

Smithsonian and 27-Year Employee in Battle Over Asbestos : Staffer Has Disease; Museum Defends Safety

Sun, 15 Mar 2009 04:00:00 GMT

Within weeks, Pullman had gathered internal documents and filed federal workplace safety complaints. And because he'd been experiencing shortness of breath, he went to see a lung doctor, who diagnosed asbestosis, a lung disease linked to breathing asbestos fibers. Pullman and the museum are now engaged in a dispute about the danger posed by asbestos dust in the building. Smithsonian Institution officials acknowledge the presence of asbestos but say their tests show there is nothing harmful in the air. As a precaution, the museum spent $27,000 to clean up 11 areas in five galleries, officials said. Industrial hygienists who reviewed the tests told The Washington Post that the greatest risk of exposure is to workers who did not wear protective gear. For visitors to the museum, exposure would be extremely unlikely unless they walked into a work area after walls were sanded or cut. Managers have known for 17 years that wall seams at the 33-year-old museum on the Mall had been smoothed over with spackling containing levels of asbestos that would trigger worker-safety rules. A consultant's report commissioned by the Smithsonian, which runs the museum, determined the material would be harmless if undisturbed. The report urged that workers be alerted. But that rarely occurred.

Asbestos Allegations at Air and Space Museum

grimaldij@washpost.com (James V. Grimaldi Washington Post Staff Writer) — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 04:00:00 GMT

Saint Charles, Ill.: You haven't even nicked into the tip of the iceberg. Asbestos is present in joint compound in homes, apartments, commercial buildings, you name it. And not just a small percentage -- I don't have any statistics, but in the 20 years I've been doing environmental work, I'll bet that 75% of joint compound samples come up as ACM. So this guy thinks he has a unique situation? Every maintenance worker at an apartment complex in the country has run into the same thing. Anyone who has scraped the textured walls in their home in order to put up wallpaper has run into it. You want a story? Go research that -- this guy's situation is just like every other Tom, Dick, and Mary maintenance or tradesman, not to mention homeowner, who worked on the sheetrock in their home. It's low level stuff that isn't that toxic. Ask him if he smokes. Makes it worse, by a factor of 10. Also, get his x-rays and have it verified. There are many quacks out there paid by lawyers to diagnose asbestos disease. . . .

He has seen three lung doctors. One is Dr. Michael Harbut, who co-authored the American Thoracic Society's criteria for diagnosing asbestosis versus other causes of lung disease. Dr. Harbut says that smoking indeed increases your risk of getting asbestosis by up to 90-fold.

Synergistic Effect (Between Cigarette Smoking and Asbestos Exposure)

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 04:00:00 GMT

Research has proven, time and again that cigarette smoking does not contribute to developing mesothelioma. In fact, patients who never smoked were more likely to develop mesothelioma, than those who did smoke. Studies also show that asbestos exposure, alone, doesn't cause lung tissue cancer. . . . The combination of asbestos exposure and smoking is far more destructive than either by itself. This multiplication of risk is called a synergistic effect. Synergism produces an outcome that is greater than the sum of the components. In this situation, the outcome is the number of people who develop lung cancer, and the components are smokers exposed to asbestos compared to smokers with no exposure to asbestos. . . . It's worth noting that smokers who have a history of asbestos exposure can reduce their risk of lung cancer as low as two to six times that of the general population in as little as ten years after quitting smoking. While this is still an undesirable risk, it is an immense improvement from 50-90 times. Since this is a controllable risk it is worth quitting smoking, however difficult that may be. If you have received a diagnosis of mesothelioma or asbestosis, you may be entitled to compensation. Please visit the website of Parker, Dumler & Kiely, LLP, the experienced mesothelioma lawyers in Baltimore, Maryland and Washington, D.C.

In This Asbestos Case, Plaintiffs May Get Burned

Wed, 25 Feb 2009 05:00:00 GMT

Asbestos defendants often say they're the victims of a multibillion-dollar shakedown. A new case could prove they're right. Asbestos defendants have complained for years that they are the victims of a multibillion-dollar shakedown. Now a Mississippi lawsuit makes that claim explicit: A Georgia company that paid out some $95 million in asbestos settlements has accused doctors, testing companies and as-yet unnamed plaintiff lawyers of participating in a racketeering scheme to gin up phony cases. It's not the first time an asbestos defendant has accused the other side of fraud. . . . Potential defendants include some of the most prominent names in the plaintiffs' bar, such as Baron & Budd; Motley Rice; Reaud, Morgan & Quinn and Brent Coon. Many are big supporters of the Democratic party and some participated in the multibillion-dollar tobacco settlement, raising the political stakes if the case proceeds. The Mississippi lawsuit--two of them, actually, filed in state and federal court--names physicians including Dr. Jay T. Segarra, an Ocean Springs, Miss., radiologist who reportedly reviewed tens of thousands of X-rays over the years for evidence of asbestos injury. . . . The Mississippi cases face an uphill fight, as lawyers and physicians have frequently cited confidentiality and the attorney-client privilege to refuse to turn over documents. But defendants have cracked the wall. An Ohio judge in 2007 booted the Novato, Calif., law firm of Brayton Purcell from an asbestos case after defendant Lorillard Tobacco Co. obtained e-mails and other documents suggesting the lawyers had made up information about their client.

Ex-Grace Officials on Trial in Asbestos Poisoning

Thu, 19 Feb 2009 05:00:00 GMT

LIBBY, Mont. — A reckoning in one of American history’s worst industrial disasters, which unfolded here over seven decades as an asbestos-tainted mineral was dug from the ground and processed, begins Thursday when five former mine executives go to trial on federal criminal charges. The case is highly unusual in that prosecutors have generally avoided criminal charges in the broad arena of asbestos law, leaving the issue to the civil courts. But the story of the now-closed mine and its adjacent mill is different, because it involves not only miners but also their families and neighbors, many of whom became ill just living in this remote northwestern corner of Montana. At least 200 deaths and thousands of illnesses are known to be related to the town’s exposure to the mine’s billowing dust clouds of vermiculite . . . The company did ban smoking at the mine in 1978 — smoking compounds the dangers of asbestos, doctors say — and also issued respirator masks to workers. But showers that the miners could have used at the end of their shifts before heading home were ruled out, because they might have overly worried people. . . . Legal experts say that some of the prosecution’s case could be particularly hard to prove, especially the charges that Grace executives obstructed justice by obfuscating in interviews with investigators at the Environmental Protection Agency, and then conspired to cover up their knowledge of the asbestos risks. “Companies have a right under the First Amendment, established by the Supreme Court and recently reinforced, to advocate on their own behalf,” said Lester Brickman, a professor at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law in New York.

Lawyer: Scruggs, ex-senator conspired to cheat him

Tue, 13 Jan 2009 05:00:00 GMT

An Alabama attorney has filed a federal lawsuit against imprisoned attorney Richard "Dickie" Scruggs and several others, alleging they conspired with a former U.S. senator to bribe a state court judge and defraud him of millions in legal fees. The former senator is not identified by name in the federal lawsuit filed Monday by William Roberts Wilson Jr. However, one of Wilson's attorneys, Vicki Slater of Jackson, said the unnamed senator is Scruggs' brother-in-law, Trent Lott, a Republican power broker who retired in 2007. . . . Scruggs and Wilson, of Tuscaloosa, Ala., once worked together suing asbestos companies. Wilson claimed Scruggs cheated him out of money and used it to fund a batch of landmark anti-tobacco lawsuits of the 1990s, in which Scruggs reportedly earned as much as $848 million. Wilson sued for a cut. Wilson now accuses Scruggs and the others of racketeering by conspiring to bribe a judge presiding over the dispute dealing with the asbestos fees.

Workers' Comp Award in Asbestos Case Reduced to Account for Cigarette Usage

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 04:00:00 GMT

The Connecticut Supreme Court has ruled that a laborer's lung damage from smoking can be segregated from respiratory problems caused by asbestos work, and his workers' compensation award reduced by the portion of his ailment caused by cigarettes. Workers' comp plaintiffs lawyers say that before the decision in George Deschenes v. Transco, such blended injuries had consistently resulted in full compensation. The justices reached their conclusion after a long struggle. The ruling, to be officially released this week, was a reconsideration of a decision issued in the same case last year. The justices tightened some language after considering amicus briefs by lawyers who represent injured workers. . . . "For the court to judicially create this apportionment where none had been before really caught the attention of a lot of people," said Nathan J. Shafner, of Groton, Conn.'s Embry & Neusner, who co-authored one of four amicus briefs in the case, on behalf of the New England Health Care Employees Union. "We saw this as more than a slippery slope -- this was a runaway train." Justice Flemming L. Norcott Jr., writing for a unanimous court, saw the question as one that had never been asked before. Whether the Workers' Compensation Act requires official consideration of two separate but concurrent illnesses -- one occupational, the other not -- is a question of first impression, he wrote, and one "that requires us to fill a gap in our statutes." . . . there was too little information in the court record for the Supreme Court to issue a final ruling. So the case was sent back for further legal proceedings before a different commissioner.

Grace Bets On Winning Asbestos Lawsuits : Judge's Ruling May Decide Firm's Future

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 05:00:00 GMT

W.R. Grace followed the same tack for a while. But pushed into bankruptcy, it now is trying the novel approach of asking a bankruptcy judge to declare many of the roughly 100,000 claims it faces to be invalid. The company is making the request as part of its effort to emerge from bankruptcy. In order for Grace to exit bankruptcy, the judge must rule on what liabilities the company faces, and that means deciding how many of the claims are valid and what they might total. The judge's decision does not resolve the individual claims, but it could set a standard for further litigation. The trial started two weeks ago, and already Judge Judith Fitzgerald has allowed the company to introduce testimony purporting to show that diseases were over-diagnosed in many cases. . . . "This case and this trial present the first opportunity for a federal court to set a standard on the basis of which the tens of thousands of asbestos claims that are being pursued can be resolved based upon their merit," said David Bernick, a lawyer representing Grace who has a long history defending companies against similar lawsuits. . . . Asbestos lawsuits have been a prominent battleground for the competing claims of trial lawyers and corporations over the years, a debate that has played out over weight loss pills, tobacco, silicon breast implants and other products.