Defense Verdict Secured in Product Liability Case Against $75 Million Claim

Thompson Coe Houston partners Zandra Foley, Michele Taylor, and Steve Augustine secured a defense verdict for their client, an American multinational conglomerate, on November 16, 2023 in an asbestos mesothelioma case with claims for alleged defects in a respiratory protective product used in the 1980s in Hawaii. The Plaintiff asked for more than $75 million in damages, including more than $15 million in compensatory damages and $60 million in punitive damages.

Medical Research Plays Key Role in Defense Verdict

Jury selection began on October 30, 2023 and the parties presented evidence over 10 trial days, with the defense presenting two witnesses over one and a half days. The case involved a 74-year-old Plaintiff with a mesothelioma diagnosis. The Thompson Coe trial team effectively established during cross examination of Plaintiff’s experts that the progression of Plaintiff’s disease was atypical and other specific facts related to Plaintiff’s disease presentation that showed the product was not the cause of his damages. Zandra was able to get the experts to confirm that not all mesothelioma presentations are caused by asbestos exposure and that there were possible genetic causation factors that they failed to rule out.

Ultimately, the jury found that the client’s product did not cause Plaintiff’s disease after several hours of deliberation before reaching a verdict the next day dismissing Plaintiff’s alleged $75 million claims. The Thompson Coe trial team was joined by other national trial counsel, local counsel, and appellate counsel.