Daily Compliance News: October 8, 2025, The Pardons , Pardons and Yet More Pardons Edition
Bill on Bankruptcy: The Market's Unquenchable Thirst for Junk
This is the fourth article in a continuing series on how to structurally optimize businesses the right way (and cautionary tales about the wrong ways), whether and when to use divisive mergers (and what not to do once you...more
Supreme Court of New York, New York County - In this asbestos action, Plaintiff Joseph Murawski alleged that he was exposed to asbestos from tile manufactured by defendant American Biltrite (“the defendant”) from 1963 to...more
United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana - Plaintiff Horace Bracy worked on ships for Lykes Brothers and then Avondale Industries in the late 1960s following his service in the Navy. He alleges he...more
The so-called Texas Two‑Step is a restructuring strategy that uses Texas state divisional‑merger law to separate a company’s operating business from certain legacy liabilities, often those involving mass tort claims. The core...more
The Johnson & Johnson talc litigation is often discussed as a single mass tort. In practice, it functions as two. Mesothelioma claims and ovarian cancer claims share a common defendant, a common product line, and common...more
(EDITOR’S NOTE: The D.C. Court of Appeals asked the Supreme Court of Maryland to answer the following question.) “Under Maryland law, in a strict liability design defect claim, must a plaintiff who alleges that she was...more
There are numerous cases pending in various courts in the United States in which the claim is that exposure to asbestos through some product caused the plaintiff ’s or decedent’s mesothelioma. Originally Published in...more
One year after the dismissal of Johnson & Johnson's third attempt to resolve its talcum powder liability through Chapter 11, the shape of the post-bankruptcy litigation involving talcum powder-mesothelioma claims is now clear...more
Introduction - If your business hires on-site independent contractors, a new Wisconsin Supreme Court decision should be on your radar. The Court’s April 2026 ruling in Lorbiecki v. Pabst Brewing Company takes a broad view...more
The U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois, applying Illinois law, held that a commercial general liability policy did not provide coverage for a suit seeking compensation for costs associated with...more
United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana - Plaintiffs allege their decedent, Michael P. Dandry, Jr., died from mesothelioma after working with asbestos-containing products at Avondale Shipyard in...more
Plaintiff Andrew Curtin sued Johnson & Johnson and Pecos River Talc in federal court in Maine, alleging his late wife Cynthia Cartwright died from mesothelioma caused by her longtime use of J&J baby powder. The defendants...more
On March 19, 2026, the Supreme Court of Kentucky issued its decision in Schneider Electric USA, Inc. v. Williams, affirming the duty to prevent take home exposure in asbestos claims on summary judgment. The case arises...more
Marcella v. Huntington Ingalls - 81-year-old Ronald Marcella was diagnosed in 2023 with cancer and died three months later. A post-mortem examination by Dr. Brent Staggs confirmed it was asbestos-related mesothelioma. The...more
George Stephenson v. PK&P Investment Co. f/k/a Mole-Richardson Co., Ltd., et al. - Plaintiff George Stephenson brought an asbestos personal-injury action against the company formerly known as Mole-Richardson Co., alleging...more
On February 24, 2026, the Ninth Circuit reversed a judgment from the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana awarding damages to plaintiffs in a Libby, Montana asbestos case, holding that BNSF Railway cannot be held...more
Jurisdiction: California - Plaintiff Stephen Anderson filed a talc-related asbestos suit in the Los Angeles County Superior Court, claiming he contracted mesothelioma. Anderson allegedly experienced exposure from, among other...more
On February 11, 2026, a split panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed the lower courts’ decisions that denied motions of asbestos claimants to lift the automatic stay in the bankruptcy case of DBMP,...more
Talcum powder litigation has evolved significantly in recent years, with juries awarding substantial verdicts in cases involving mesothelioma allegedly linked to asbestos-contaminated talc products....more
Court: United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit - Plaintiffs — the estates of deceased former residents of Libby, Montana — allege that their decedents developed mesothelioma from asbestos exposure....more
Jurisdiction: Court of Appeal of California, Fourth Appellate District, Division One - The plaintiffs — municipal employees — sued the City of San Diego and one of its officials for injuries they allegedly suffered from...more
Court: United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana - Plaintiffs Erica Dandry Constanza and Monica Dandry Hallner allege the decedent, Michael P. Dandry Jr., had occupational exposure to asbestos by...more
On 20 January 2026 the English Commercial Court delivered a judgment in MS “V1” GmbH & Co KG & Anor v SY Co., Ltd [2026] EWCH 52 (Comm), rejecting a challenge to arbitral jurisdiction under section 67 of the Arbitration Act...more
Jurisdiction: United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana - Plaintiffs Erica Dandry Constanza and Monica Dandry Hallner allege decedent Michael P. Dandry Jr., while an employee for Avondale, was exposed...more
Court: United States District Court for the Central District of California - Plaintiffs filed suit against multiple Defendants, including Lockheed Martin Corporation, due to decedent Alice Faulk’s asbestos exposure,...more