Appeals Court Denies Attempt to Overturn $2.3 Million Mesothelioma Verdict
Thomas Constantine’s family blamed his mesothelioma diagnosis and death on asbestos he was exposed to at his job, and a Philadelphia jury agreed. Though they ordered his former employer, Lenox Instrument Company, to pay his survivors $2.3 million in damages, the company objected and appealed. Two years later, an appeals court denied the company’s motion and ordered them to pay the victim’s survivors what they were owed.
Asbestos Exposure on the Job Led to Draftsman’s Mesothelioma
Years before his mesothelioma death, Mr. Constantine had worked for seven years as a draftsman and designer for Lenox Instrument. When he was diagnosed with the asbestos-related disease, he identified significant exposure from the company’s manufacturing process, which involved cutting, drilling, and milling heat shields. His proximity to this work led to him inhaling asbestos-filled air, and his eventual illness.
Following the mesothelioma jury’s decision, the company filed a motion with the Superior Court of Pennsylvania requesting a new trial or entry of verdict, maintaining that the evidence submitted to the court had not warranted the verdict. They asserted that the awarding of $818,444.74 to the man’s estate for injuries suffered before his death, $700,000 in wrongful death damages to his widow and children, and $700,000 more to his widow for loss of consortium represented an abuse of the court’s discretion.
Superior Court Denies Asbestos Company’s Appeal of Mesothelioma Verdict
Following a review of Lenox Instrument Company’s appeal, the judges of the Superior Court found that the jury’s decision had been based on a significant amount of supporting evidence, including the mesothelioma victim’s own testimony, corroboration from his former colleagues, and expert witnesses.
They also noted that the jury had been shown unequivocal evidence that the company had access to publicly available materials about the dangers of asbestos, writing that “Lenox either should have known of the dangers that asbestos posed or in fact did know, as evidenced by the experiences recounted by the decedent’s co-worker.” The court found that Lenox Instrument’s lack of action was appropriately weighed by the jury.
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