In another blow to companies with exposure to asbestos-related claims, a Mississippi state court dismissed a lawsuit filed by Owens Corning seeking reimbursement from tobacco companies for billions of…
In another blow to companies with exposure to asbestos-related claims, a Mississippi state court dismissed a lawsuit filed by Owens Corning seeking reimbursement from tobacco companies for billions of dollars it has paid in personal-injury settlements. Many asbestos companies have argued that smoking strongly contributed to injuries suffered by asbestos plaintiffs. Owens Corning claimed in the case that R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings, Inc., R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. and other tobacco companies knowingly helped cause plaintiffs“ injuries by not revealing the fatal synergies between smoking and asbestos. In October, Owens Corning, a building-materials manufacturer based in Toledo, Ohio, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy court protection due to asbestos liability. Owens Corning has paid out more than US$ 5 billion in settlements over the past several years. Judge Lamar Pickard, who presides over the Circuit Court of Jefferson County, Mississippi, rejected the case citing the “doctrine of remoteness”. Simply put, the doctrine doesn“t allow third parties to collect money for injuries suffered by others. Judge Pickard found that Owens Corning didn“t suffer “direct injury” from tobacco products. Though the doctrine has been widely recognized in federal courts, the Mississippi ruling is significant, says David Bernick, a lawyer for Brown & Williamson Corp., a unit of British American Tobacco Plc which was also named in the suit. In recent years, Jefferson County has developed a reputation as being one of the most plaintiff-friendly jurisdictions in the U.S. Those who follow asbestos litigation believe that Owens Corning filed in Jefferson County to get a more favourable hearing. “To have this state court recognize the doctrine of remoteness says that it doesn“t make a difference where plaintiffs go,” Mr. Bernick says. A lawyer for Owens Corning, W.G. Watkins, said that Judge Pickard had erred in the ruling, adding that the company would appeal the decision. Mr. Watkins said that documents show that tobacco companies made it a strategic decision to try to shift blame for tobacco-related illnesses onto asbestos companies.