Robert O. Waldon died of lung cancer after years of having been exposed to asbestos in Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company gaskets. His survivors filed a personal injury lawsuit against the company, accusing them of negligence in having exposed him to the deadly material, without warning. Though the company attempted to have the case against it dismissed, the New York judge overseeing the case denied their motion for summary judgment.
Summary Judgment Rules Prevent Lung Cancer Case from Being Dismissed
Whether filed by a mesothelioma victim, a lung cancer victim, or anybody else, when a lawsuit is filed against a defendant, they have the right to ask the court to dismiss the case. But in doing so, they are required to show that there are no triable facts for a jury to decide. In the case of Robert O. Waldon’s lung cancer death, the company argued that the case should be dismissed on the basis that its products could not have caused his illness and death.
Though Goodyear supported its argument with expert reports from an industrial hygienist and a medical doctor, the victim’s family submitted testimony from its own experts in opposition. The lung cancer victim’s family also pointed to his specific testimony regarding the Goodyear gaskets that he’d worked with, and the company’s manufacturing history regarding asbestos-containing sheet gasket material in opposition to Goodyear’s experts’ assertions.
Judge Notes Rules of Summary Judgment in Denying Goodyear’s Request to Dismiss Lung Cancer Case
In handing down his decision, Justice Adam Silvera of the New York Supreme Court first noted that summary judgment is a drastic remedy that should only be granted when the party asking for it can prove that there are no issues of fact to be determined. He then ruled that the testimony provided by Goodyear failed to meet that burden of proof because the witness on behalf of the Waldon family was in direct conflict with what the company’s witnesses were saying.
Additionally, the judge noted that Goodyear’s expert opinion failed to provide an estimate of Mr. Waldon’s exposure to Goodyear’s products, thus explicitly failing to meet the burden required for the case to be dismissed.
If you or someone you love has been diagnosed with lung cancer or malignant mesothelioma, the Patient Advocates at Mesothelioma.net are here to help. Contact us today at 1-800-692-8608.
