2BInformed: Engaging with EPA, OSHA’s New Regulation, and Asbestos
In June 2025, a Suffolk County, Massachusetts jury delivered an $8 million verdict in Janice Paluzzi v. Johnson & Johnson (21-2109). The jury allocated $5 million for past pain and suffering and $3 million for future pain and...more
The Trump administration will uphold a Biden-era ban on the ongoing use of asbestos after previously saying it would reconsider the rule. The rule requires companies to phase out their use of chrysotile asbestos, which is the...more
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and Halifax Construction Company, Inc. (“Halifax”) entered into a June 6th Consent Agreement (“CA”) addressing alleged violations of 40 C.F.R. Part 61, Subpart M,...more
As reported in our June 28, 2025, blog item, on June 16, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) filed a motion with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit requesting that litigation over its 2024 final...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) 2024 ban on chrysotile asbestos, a landmark regulatory action under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), is now subject to significant delay following legal challenges and...more
Stradling Bankruptcy and Financial Restructuring partner Greg Jones recently joined Legal Lens, a Debtwire podcast, for an in-depth discussion on the evolving challenges of asbestos-related bankruptcies—highlighting the...more
On June 16, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) filed a motion with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit requesting that litigation over its 2024 final rule regulating chrysotile asbestos under the...more
Court: Superior Court of Pennsylvania - In this asbestos appeal, appellant Sandra Pendergrass — the administratrix of the estate of decedent, Vernetta Merie Coe — appealed the Court of Common Pleas of Erie County Civil...more
Court: Court of Appeals of North Carolina - Decedent Tommy Lineberger was employed as a truck driver with defendants Carolina Freight Carriers Corp. and ABF Freight System Inc. from 1971 to 1999. In 2016, Mr. Lineberger was...more
Owners and operators of facilities damaged or destroyed by the recent Los Angeles-area wildfires should be aware of the risks posed by toxic contaminant releases during cleanup and, in particular, the regulatory requirements...more
Court: United States Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the Ninth Circuit - Debtor Ben Nye Co. Inc., a manufacturer and distributer of theatrical makeup, filed for subchapter V bankruptcy in March 2024. Its proposed bar date...more
Jurisdiction: Schenectady Supreme Court, New York - Defendant Fives Giddings & Lewis were sued in New York by plaintiff McCune, based on the allegation that their machinery exposed him to asbestos. Mr. McCune filed this...more
The Environmental Protection Agency announced May 6 it had reached a settlement with Scranton, Pa. schools regarding alleged asbestos violations. The EPA alleged the school district had failed “to include all required...more
Court: Washington Superior Court, Pierce County - A Washington state court in April awarded $16 million to the estate of decedent Steven Korzerke after a default judgment was entered against defendant Asbestos Corp. LTD, a...more
On March 18th, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s ban of Chrysotile asbestos became the first rule to be finalized under the 2016 amendments to the nation’s chemical safety law, the Toxic Substances Control Act...more
Jurisdiction: Broward County Circuit Court - A Florida jury on April 23 handed down an $18 million verdict in aperitoneal mesothelioma case brought by the law firm of Maune Raichle Hartley French & Mudd, LLC....more
The Alberta Court of King’s Bench provides clarification on both the interpretation and application of the Occupational Health and Safety Act regarding asbestos as well as the duties of landlords and tenants to carry out...more
Asbestos workers in the state of Louisiana who have been diagnosed with mesothelioma cancer or asbestos lung cancer may be eligible to file a lawsuit or bankruptcy trust claim against the companies responsible for their...more
Asbestos fibers, chemical fumes, environmental pollutants—what do they have in common? They all involve injuries that manifest over time and are continuously at the center of the complex exposure trigger debate....more
Court: Florida – 17th Judicial Circuit Court - Plaintiff, Denise J. Guth Cook alleged asbestos exposure from consumer talc products and automobile parts. She specifically alleged bystander and household exposure from...more
Earlier this year, at least four asbestos bankruptcy trusts including WR Grace, Babcock & Wilcox, Pittsburgh Corning and Owens Corning, issued notices regarding their intent to destroy data and documents submitted by...more
This insurance-coverage dispute involved alleged asbestos exposure from asbestos-containing vermiculite mined from Vermiculite Mountain outside of Libby, Mont. The court acknowledged that vermiculite ore may contain toxic...more
Jurisdiction: Calif. Super., Los Angeles Co. - Plaintiff Jose Estrada filed suit alleging exposure to asbestos from a variety of products, including automobile parts during his employment at a tire store. Mr. Estrada was...more
Jurisdiction: United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana - This case arises from Plaintiff Nolan J. Lebouf Jr.’s alleged exposure to asbestos. The plaintiff specifically claims to have been exposed to...more
Jurisdiction: Illinois Circuit Court – Cook County - This lawsuit involved a survival and wrongful death action brought under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA) in Illinois. Plaintiff, Annette Sanders, represented...more