In the largest mesothelioma award in California this year, a Los Angeles County jury awarded a mesothelioma victim and his family $48 million against several firms, including at least two cement companies. A total of $23.9 million was handed out in three other cases to the families of workers who died from the asbestos-related disease. The biggest of these payouts, $17 million, was awarded by a Pennsylvania jury on behalf of two victims, who had worked with asbestos-containing valves and gaskets. The widow of a 78-year-old man who had worked for the Merchant Marines for 35 years won a $3.9 million judgment in a Cleveland, OH courtroom. A New York jury awarded $3 million to the family of a deceased pipefitter.
