Mesothelioma Widow’s Fight with Honeywell International Continues

A loved one’s death from malignant mesothelioma often leads to David and Goliath legal actions that pit lone individuals against giant corporations. When Joan Barbarino lost her husband Roy to the rare asbestos-related disease, she filed a claim against one of the biggest companies in the world — Honeywell International. A New York judge recently awarded her a victory in her pursuit of justice.

Mesothelioma Victim Exposed to Asbestos While Working for New York City Transit Authority

Mrs. Barbarino’s mesothelioma claim asserts that her husband was exposed to asbestos from Honeywell International’s Bendix brakes during the 25 years that he worked for the New York City Transit Authority. Between 1962 and 1987, he worked at a variety of locations in a Bus Maintainer “B” position and ultimately being promoted to Bus Maintainer “A”. Each of these positions put him in close proximity to workers performing engine and brake repairs on the transit authority’s vehicles.

To support her case, Mrs. Barbarino presented the mesothelioma victim’s own testimony about having breathed in dust in his workplace from the repair area that he worked near. She also presented testimony from two of her late husband’s former co-workers: each testified regarding the use of Bendix brakes by the transit authority, with one specifically indicating that he had seen mechanics working alongside the victim. Despite this evidence, Honeywell petitioned for the case against them to be dismissed. They argued that the widow had not presented sufficient proof to show that the dust in their brakes had led to her husband’s illness.

Judge Notes Burden of Proof in Mesothelioma Cases

Upon hearing the case, Justice Adam Silvera of the Supreme Court of the State of New York denied Honeywell International’s motion for summary judgment and permitted the widow’s mesothelioma claim to move forward. He noted that the company’s arguments against the claim rested on the widow’s failure to prove that their brakes had caused his death, and that this was not what the law required for summary judgment to be granted. In order to win and have the case dismissed, the company would have had to prove that their dust could not have caused his illness, and they failed to do that. The widow’s claim will move forward to a jury.