Workplace Hazards - Wednesday, September 12, 2012 9:52 - 0 Comments

$3 Million Verdict For Ohio Family In Asbestos Case

A jury in Delaware has awarded $2.86 million to an Ohio family in an asbestos lawsuit against a New York mining company. The award was to the family of Michael Galliher, who died from mesothelioma, an aggressive cancer caused by exposure to asbestos fibers. The award against RT Vanderbilt is the largest asbestos verdict against a single Defendant in Delaware in more than a decade. Galliher was diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma in August 2010. He died six months later at age 62.

Galliher used a talc powder contaminated with asbestos fibers to dust large molds of sinks, bathtubs and other ceramic fixtures while working at Crane Plumbing Fixtures Factory for nearly 40 years. The asbestos fibers came from a mine in Gouverneur, N.Y., owned and operated by RT Vanderbilt, a mining and manufacturing company that sells more than 60 categories of minerals and chemicals used in more than 800 products.

Expert testimony was introduced at trial to link Galliher’s exposure to the asbestos-laced talc dust to his cancer. The theory of liability was that RT Vanderbilt sold its talc without adequate safety warnings. Alton-based law firm Simmons Browder Gianaris Angelides & Barnerd Simmons attorneys Randy Cohn, Conard Metcalf and Bill Kohlburn represented Galliher’s family against RT Vanderbilt Inc.

Source: Bizjournals.com