$36.5 Million Verdict Could Change Asbestos Litigation in Libby, Montana

A Montana District Court jury recently delivered a $36.5 million verdict in a bellwether case that is expected to significantly change the landscape of future litigation involving vermiculite mining and asbestos exposure in Libby, Montana. The jury in Great Falls, Montana, awarded laborer Ralph Hutt $6.5 million in compensatory damages and $30 million in punitive damages in February, dwarfing awards plaintiffs have typically received in the past. Based on a recent Montana Supreme Court decision, the insurance carrier once overseeing the occupational safety program at W.R. Grace & Company, which operated an asbestos-contaminated mine in Libby, is no longer protected by the company’s 2001 bankruptcy filing. District Court Judge Amy Eddy had chosen Hutt’s case as the first of almost 900 cases pending against Maryland Casualty Company, which provided the safety program and workers’ compensation insurance for W.R. Grace & Company. Eddy oversees Montana’s special asbestos claims court, which was formed in 2017. Eddy said in pretrial hearings that she wanted this case to establish the parameters and framework for future trials involving similar claims. One of the issues was the statute of limitations, which was decided in favor of the plaintiff. The court also ruled that safety and medical professionals at Maryland Casualty had the duty to protect workers’ health, yet they failed to warn them of the hazards of the job and the risks of airborn...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Source Type: news