LITIGATIONRESULTS - Whyte Hirschboeck Dudek SC

WHD Obtains Directed Verdict
at Close of Plaintiffs’ Evidence
laffey
THOMAS PAGELS
WHD obtained a directed verdict at the close of the plaintiffs’ case for its client,
a pass-through supplier of asbestos-containing pipe insulation. The plaintiffs
argued that the decedent, the wife of a school custodian, was exposed to
asbestos-containing products through laundering her husband’s work clothes.
The case was tried to a judge who was new to the civil bench. Over seven days
of trial, the plaintiffs argued that they were entitled to have their case decided
by a jury, despite WHD’s presentation of school records that demonstrated that
if the custodian was exposed to asbestos, the schools had not specified and
used a product that WHD’s client did not sell. WHD argued that because the
plaintiffs had not produced any credible evidence of the decendent’s exposure
to its client’s products, it should be dismissed. The trial court agreed, dismissing
the entire case and granting judgment in favor of the supplier.
Litigation Type: Toxic tort litigation, product liability litigation
Court: Milwaukee County Circuit Court
Lead WHD Counsel: Jack Laffey and Sarah Thomas Pagels
Principal WHD Team Members: Jack Laffey, Sarah Thomas Pagels,
Tammy Klein (paralegal)
Practice Areas Involved: Toxic Tort Litigation & Consultation
LITIGATION RESULTS 29