New York Asbestos Case Law

Asbestos decisions from New York's courts and the federal courts there: 711 cases in our library so far. For what the law requires today, see New York asbestos laws; for where exposure happened, see New York asbestos exposure sites.

Federal bankruptcy courts

U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of New York

• In re Quigley Co., Inc. (2007). The bankruptcy court ruled that the three mesothelioma claimants, who were not parties to the adversary proceeding, could seek relief from the preliminary injunction protecting Pfizer. It did not grant relief and set a status conference and possible evidentiary hearing; Quigley and Pfizer's opposition was not yet resolved.
• In re Dana Corp. (2006). The bankruptcy court denied the Ad Hoc Committee of Asbestos Personal Injury Claimants' motion to order the U.S. Trustee to appoint a separate official asbestos claimants committee in Dana Corp.'s Chapter 11 cases, siding with the Debtors, the U.S. Trustee and the creditors' committees.
• In re Quigley Co. (2006). The bankruptcy court estimated asbestos personal injury claims for voting by disease-based Trust Distribution Procedure values and discounted the votes of claimants who settled with Pfizer by 90%, so Class 4 rejected Quigley's plan, a loss for Quigley and Pfizer and a win for the Ad Hoc Committee of non-settling claimants.
• In re Prudential Lines, Inc. (1996). On remand from the district court, the bankruptcy court held that the extrinsic evidence did not resolve the ambiguity in "occurrence", so the term meant the general presence of asbestos on each PLI vessel in each triggered policy period. American Club could apply only one deductible per policy, a win for the Trustee and the asbestosis claimants.
• In re Waterman SS Corp. (1996). After remand, the bankruptcy court sided with the claimants on the operative date (the earlier claims bar date, not the confirmation date Waterman wanted) and with Waterman Steamship on burden of proof, joinder of all 3,500 claimants and wrongful-death accrual; it found the medical evidence too thin to decide most claims, reopened discovery, and ruled on 15 individual claimants.
• In re Keene Corp. (1994). The bankruptcy court granted Dorothy Richter's motion for relief from the automatic stay so the direct and contribution appeals of her New Jersey judgment against Keene could continue, with conditions; Keene lost.
• In re Prudential Lines, Inc. (1992). The bankruptcy court granted summary judgment to the Asbestosis Claimants and Trustee on deductibles, the Plan's "Liman" provision and post-petition interest, granted partial summary judgment to American Club on setoff, and denied summary judgment on allocation of coverage.
• In re Waterman SS Corp. (1992). The bankruptcy court granted the Asbestosis Claimants' summary judgment motion, holding their claims were pre-petition claims but were not discharged by Waterman Steamship's confirmation order because Waterman failed to give known creditors adequate notice.
• In re Joint Eastern & Southern Dist. Asbestos Lit. (1990). The district and bankruptcy courts held that they had authority to conditionally certify a mandatory Rule 23(b)(1)(B) limited-fund class of Manville Trust beneficiaries and to stay all pending and future state and federal proceedings against the Trust, with exceptions for trials already underway.
• In re Johns-Manville Corp. (1989). The bankruptcy court permanently enjoined the claimants (Billiot, Molette, Taylor and Gruber) from pursuing their suits outside the Manville Plan's Claims Resolution Procedures, in favor of the Manville debtors and Trust; it made no contempt finding or sanctions because the claimants agreed to dismiss.
• In re Johns-Manville Corp. (1984). The bankruptcy court granted Keene Corp.'s motion to appoint a legal representative for future asbestos claimants in the Manville reorganization, holding that those claimants are parties in interest, and set a later hearing on the representative's form and function.