It’s been nearly ten years since Stephen Stewart was first diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, and three years since a South Carolina jury ordered dryer felt company Scapa Waycross, Inc. to pay the man’s family a total of $700,000 — later amended to $1 million — for his economic damages and the pain and suffering that he suffered before his death. But the company continued to wage a battle against the victim, appealing the verdict on grounds including that their liability had not been proven. This week the state’s Court of Appeals denied all of the asbestos company’s arguments, allowing the family to keep what the jury and trial judge had felt was fair.
Mesothelioma Victim had been Paper Mill Worker
When Mr. Stewart was first diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, he filed claims against multiple companies whose asbestos-contaminated products he had worked with in his forty-year career with Bowater Southern Paper Corporation. All of the other companies named resolved the issues without litigation, with most settling claims out of court, but Scapa Waycross argued against their role in his sickness and subsequent death.
Over the course of the mesothelioma trial, the jury heard testimony about the company’s dryer felts that Mr. Stewart had worked with, and that asbestos constituted 30 to 70% of their composition. An expert witness testified that one felt used on the machine that Mr. Stewart worked with would have contained between 752 and 1,000 pounds of asbestos. A coworker testified that though they were unaware of which of th felts they’d worked with contained asbestos, after installing a dryer felt employees would have to use air hoses to blow themselves off due to the dust that was left on them and their cloths.
Judge Denies All of Company’s Grounds for Appeal of Mesothelioma Verdict
In its appeal, Scapa’s attorneys argued that the mesothelioma damages that they’d been assessed should be overturned. In its decision, the appeals court rejected each of its assertions, making special note of the company’s complaint about the trial judge adjusting the award up to approximately $1 million in light of the extreme suffering that Mr. Stewart had endured.
In their rejection of the company’s appeal, the judges wrote in part, “The record is replete with evidence of [Mr. Stewart’s] pain and suffering, which was unrefuted by Scapa, [and\ we find the trial court was well within its discretion in granting Stewart a new trial nisi additur and increasing his survival damages to $1 million.”
If you or someone you love has been affected by malignant mesothelioma, it is important that you work with experienced, knowledgeable professionals. For more information on how the Patient Advocates at Mesothelioma.net can help, contact us today at 1-800-692-8608.
