Asbestos Suit Lists 163 Defendants
A four-party lawsuit recently filed in Kanawha County, West Virginia lists 163 defendants and seeks compensatory and punitive damages against all the defendants, both jointly and severally. The plaintiffs claim exposure to asbestos, which has caused them to be sickened with various asbestos-related diseases.
According to an article in the West Virginia Record, a Pittsburgh attorney has filed the suit on behalf of Jack and Edith England and Clifford and Edwina Maffett, all of Ohio; and John Nesselroad Jr. and Ralph and Naomi Smith of West Virginia.
Jack England was employed as a sheet metal worker for many years and currently suffers from asbestosis and lung cancer. Maffett was a millwright with Union Local USWA 1190 and suffers from the same illnesses as England.
John Nesselroad was employed as a boilermaker for Union Local 154 and currently suffers with asbestosis. Smith, the sickest of the group of four men, worked as a millwright for Union Local 1755 and has been diagnosed with mesothelioma, an asbestos-caused cancer.
The suit notes that the exposure to asbestos occurred in 41 plants throughout West Virginia. It also states that the companies knew about the risk associated with the exposure to asbestos fibers, yet did not warn their employees or provide any protective gear for their use.
