Marks, O’Neill’s Delaware office obtained favorable summary judgment rulings in two asbestos matters pending in the Superior Court of the State of Delaware, New Castle County. The motions were presented by Eileen Ford, Esquire.
In both matters, Plaintiffs alleged exposure to asbestos from their time serving in the US Navy. Summary judgment motions were filed on the basis that there was insufficient product identification to meet the initial element of Maritime law, namely that the plaintiff was exposed to a product manufactured by the defendant (i.e. Lindstrom factors). Plaintiffs opposed both motions on the basis that the record contained adequate evidence of Plaintiffs’ work with and/or around the defendants products, however, spent the majority of their oppositions arguing that pursuant to Air & Liquid Sys. Corp v. DeVries, the 2019 United States Supreme Court ruling, the duty to warn factors are primary factors to be considered, before the Lindstrom product nexus and substantial factor requirements are addressed. The Superior Court Judge disagreed and ruled that it did not need to reach the DeVries analysis because there is insufficient evidence that Plaintiff met the first element of Lindstrom (i.e. no evidence of exposure to defendants product).
