The New York Court of Appeals is set to hear arguments this week on whether expert testimony on the potential link between certain asbestos-containing products and a mechanic’s mesothelioma was enough for a jury to find Ford Motor Co. partly liable for the worker’s illness.
The arguments are on an appeal from the Appellate Division, First Department, which decided that the jury’s decision could not be upheld because the experts at trial failed to quantify the mechanic’s exposure to asbestos, and therefore could not directly link Ford’s products to his disease….
The case has the potential to assert a stricter standard in personal injury cases when the claimant is seeking relief from exposure to a toxic substance, such as asbestos. If affirmed by the Court of Appeals, claimants will have to show they were exposed to a sufficient amount of the toxin to cause their disease.
Arthur Juni Jr. brought the lawsuit against Ford and others in 2012, claiming exposure to their products caused his mesothelioma. He worked on Ford vehicles as an auto mechanic at Orange & Rockland for more than four decades, ending in 2009.
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