New York is ranked fourth in the US for asbestos related lawsuits filed, and many of these lawsuits have resulted in some the highest profile jury awards in asbestos cases.
Over recent years, New York Juries have awarded a lot of double digits million dollar compensations to mesothelioma victims. A typical example is that of Alfred D'Ulise who was awarded 20 million dollars in a recent case filed against Chrysler -Daimler where he worked as a brake mechanic. In the year 2006 case, a New York jury judged Chrysler-Daimler to be at 10% fault. The jury also judged the car company to have acted with reckless disregard, meaning that Chrysler could be held liable for the entire amount of money under the Law of New York.
Determination of Liability
New York follows a pure comparative liability system in determining liability in personal injury suits. Under a pure comparative liability system, a plaintiff may recover some damages even if they a re judged to be up to 99% responsible for their own injury. However, if the plaintiff is judged to be at fault in their own injury, the award for damages is reduced in proportion to their fault in the case. Thus, if the jury finds that the damages in a case amount to $10,000 and the plaintiff is 40% liable, the plaintiff can recover $6,000.
New York courts adopt a modified joint and several liability system in giving awards in cases where there are multiple defendants. Defendants may be held jointly liable for economic damages. When determining the responsibility for non-economic damages, any defendant who is 50% or less responsible for the plaintiff's injuries is subject to several liability, and can only be held responsible for the portion of damages that corresponds to their portion of the blame. Any defendant who is determined to be more than 50% responsible for the defendant's injuries is subject to joint and several liability, and can be held liable for the entire amount of the award.
Examples of New York Asbestos Lawsuits:
- 2006 - Rosenberg, Casale v. Alpha Wire, et al: NY Jury awards $9 million to two families in groundbreaking cases involving manufacturers of asbestos coated cable, steam fittings and valves. The cases were the first to find for plaintiffs in cases invo lving coated cable and steam valves
- 2006 - Alfred D'Ulisse, et al. v. DaimlerChrysler Corp.: Alfred D'Ulisse worked as a brake mechanic from 1960 to 1964, and off and on for the next 36 years part time while he worked as a police officer. He alleged that his work stripping brake linings exposed him to asbestos which caused his mesothelioma. Verdict: Plaintiff, $25 million
- 2003 - Robert Crouteau v. Consolidated Edison, KeySpan Corporation and Long Island Lighting Company: Robert Crouteau was a 54 year old former boilermaker who developed mesothelioma after being exposed to asbestos on the job for ConEd, KeySpan and Long Island Lighting. He was diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma in 2001, and filed suit against the three companies. Verdict: Plaintiff, $47 million
- 1993 - Consorti, Luchnick, Pulizzi, Tabolt v. LIRR: Four plaintiffs with mesothelioma in a consolidated trial before the New York Southern District Court Verdict: Plaintiff , $47.5 million
- 2003 - Gomez, Tucker v. Lincoln Electric and Hobart Bros. : The case was the first case to succeed against the manufacturers of welding rods containing asbestos. Verdict: Plaintiff, $3.19 million and $3.6 million respectively
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