I Did Something to Grab the Attention of the AP

The following is an AP article taken from today's Clarion Ledger. It marks the first time that an opinion I worked on made the news.

Miss. Supreme Court tosses 18 out-of-state asbestos claims against 3M

The Associated Press

The Mississippi Supreme Court has tossed out the asbestos claims of 18 out-of-state plaintiffs against the 3M Co.

In its 6-1 decision this past week, the court ruled a trial judge erred in ruling the cases would be heard in Holmes County Circuit Court.

"Holmes County lacks the required interest in the wholly out-of-state appellees' claims, and it would be a waste of judicial resources if tried in Mississippi," Presiding Justice Kay Cobb wrote for the court.

Cobb said the plaintiffs have no connection to Mississippi and are neither from Mississippi nor did their injuries arise from conduct in Mississippi.

"The courts of Mississippi will not become the default forum for plaintiffs seeking to consolidate mass-tort actions. To allow otherwise would waste finite judicial resources on claims that have nothing to do with the state," Cobb said.

In a 19th case, Cobb said Circuit Judge Jannie Lewis must determine separately if that case can be heard in Mississippi. Plaintiff Willie Kern claims exposure to asbestos while working in Attala County and in Illinois.

Of the 18 out-of-state plaintiffs, 13 claimed exposure in Illinois, while others claimed exposure in Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Colorado and North Carolina.

Cobb said if the out-of-state plaintiffs were allowed to pursue their claims in Mississippi, the trial judge would be forced to apply not only Mississippi law, but also the laws of Colorado, Illinois, Louisiana, North Carolina, Minnesota and Missouri.

"This would require seven different product liability statutes, seven different jury instructions and seven different verdicts. This would confuse the jury and lead to possible error," she said.
Asbestos is a commercial name for several different types of minerals that were commonly used in insulation, fireproofing materials, wallboard materials and automotive brakes until the 1970s.
Its use was drastically scaled back after public disclosure that it had a tendency to break down into microscopic particles that could hang in the air and be easily inhaled, potentially causing lung scarring, breathing problems, cancer or heart failure.

In 2000, more than 150 plaintiffs sued about 62 defendants in Holmes County over asbestos exposure. Six plaintiffs were selected to be tried jointly against the defendants against whom there were claims.

On Oct. 1, 2001, a jury awarded each plaintiff $25 million in compensatory damages. No punitive damages were awarded.

The Mississippi Supreme Court threw out the jury award in 2005, ruling that separate trials should have been conducted in each case.

In what has become the standard for huge tort lawsuits involving multiple plaintiffs and defendants, the Supreme Court ruled it was improper to group the plaintiffs together when their claims did not arise from the same incident or involve the same defendants.