Judge Rules Flight Attendant’s Mesothelioma Case Subject to New York Laws
Before former Delta Airlines flight attendant Linda English died of malignant mesothelioma, she filed suit in the state of New York against Colgate-Palmolive, blaming asbestos-contaminated talc in the company’s Cashmere Bouquet for her fatal illness. The company filed a motion to have the case dismissed based on her residency in Texas, but a New York judge rejected their argument and permitted the claim to remain in the state’s courts.
Flight Attendant’s Death Blamed on Asbestos in Talcum Powder Product
Ms. English died in 2021. Her claim is being carried on by her widow, Patricia Raso, who argued against Colgate-Palmolive’s petition for the case to be dismissed. She asserted that Ms. English had used Cashmere Bouquet talcum powder while on layovers in New York over the course of her 33-year career and that the company is based in New York.
Texas has different standards for filing a mesothelioma claim, and the evidence supporting Ms. English’s case would not reach those standards, while it is sufficient in New York. This is why Colgate-Palmolive argued that the case should have been filed in Texas. They pointed to the mesothelioma victim having been a resident of Texas, having purchased the product in Texas, and never having lived or received treatment in New York, but Justice Adam Silvera of the Supreme Court of New York County disagreed.
Judge Cites New York’s Conflicts of Law in Mesothelioma Venue Decision
Before her mesothelioma death, Ms. English testified that she had used the Colgate-Palmolive powder regularly and extensively during layovers in New York, and the judge pointed to that testimony, as well as New York conflicts of law requirements, in denying the talcum company’s motion. He said that New York has a judicial interest in what happens within its boundaries, and denied the company’s request for summary judgment.
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