Plaintiff, 63-years-old and a lifelong plumber, was diagnosed with mesothelioma. As a result, plaintiff sued the manufacturers of the plumbing materials that he used, which allegedly contained asbestos. Plaintiff alleged that he was exposed to asbestos from the various job sites where he had been using asbestos-containing products. Plaintiff used five experts who testified about the various plumbing products used, how people are exposed to asbestos, the dangers of asbestos, and the steps between asbestos exposure and the development of mesothelioma. The defense argued that plaintiff's exposure to asbestos was minimal and its products did not have significant amounts of asbestos.
VERDICT: $16,273,421 and a punitive damages award of $20 million. Sidebar: Plaintiff originally sued twelve defendants, ten of which settled for an undisclosed amount before trial.
John Casey and Patricia Casey v. FDCC California Inc., et. al. (Superior Court of San Francisco County, San Francisco, California, Case no. 277517).
