Second-Hand Mesothelioma Lawsuit to Return to State Court
Mesothelioma victims who file lawsuits against the companies that exposed them to asbestos encounter numerous detours on their path to justice and compensation. One of the most common of these is an argument about what court will hear the case; while defendants generally prefer federal courts, victims prefer state courts. In one ongoing case, a couple who blame the wife’s mesothelioma on second-hand exposure won the right to have her case returned to the jurisdiction of her choice.
Mesothelioma Victim Sues The Boeing Company
Mary and Kenneth Holste filed a mesothelioma lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court. The Boeing Company was one of the defendants named in their claim because the organization is successor in interest to Hughes Helicopters, which had been Mr. Holste’s employer. The complaint against Boeing cited asbestos carried home on Mr. Holste’s work clothes after he’d worked on parts for guns mounted on helicopters made by the company.
The reference to military guns on helicopters led Boeing to remove the mesothelioma claim to federal court based on the statute that applies when a company is following government orders for its product. But the couple pushed back on this move by filing a Notice of Waiver, indicating that they were not pursuing compensation against the company for any exposure to military equipment. They said that the case was specifically about “asbestos exposures sustained from civilian products and equipment at civilian work sites.”
Judge Reviews Claim and Agrees with Mesothelioma Victim
Many plaintiffs in civil litigation, including mesothelioma victims, prefer to have their cases heard by judges and juries in their local jurisdiction rather than in federal court. There are several reasons for this, ranging from better procedural rules to more sympathetic juries to more generous rules surrounding damages awards.
In reviewing the mesothelioma victim’s request to keep the case in local court, the Honorable Josephine L. Staton, United States District Judge of the Central District of California, noted that though it might be difficult for the victim to prove exposure to asbestos for civilian uses rather than military uses, the waiver was appropriately filed and would be honored. The case was remanded back to the Los Angeles Superior Court, as the victim requested.
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