Supreme Court Rules on Asbestos

The Michigan Supreme Court recently issued an order barring the consolidation of asbestos cases for settlement or trial.

The Court's four-to-three decision requires lower courts to hear asbestos cases individually, prohibiting the “bundling” of cases, according to the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies (NAMIC). The result of the decision is that very serious cases will not be used as leverage to settle less serious cases. Currently, there are more than 25,000 asbestos-related lawsuits pending in Michigan. There has not been an asbestos case trial verdict in the state since 1999.

“It is the opinion of this Court that each case should be decided on its own merits and not in conjunction with other cases. Thus, no asbestos-related disease personal-injury action shall be joined with any other such case for settlement or for any other purpose, with exception of discovery,” the Court's majority opinion stated. Justice Stephen J. Markman's concurring majority opinion stated that the Court's order will allow the state legislature to more accurately assess the true costs of asbestos litigation, which he said has been obscured by the bundling of claims.

“Asbestos claims are inundating U.S. courts at an alarming rate,” said Marliss Browder, NAMIC's federal affairs director. “To date, over 700,000 asbestos liability claims have been filed. One reason for the drastic increase in asbestos lawsuits is that the scope of defendants has widened to companies with only peripheral involvement with asbestos. Previously, the majority of asbestos claims centered on companies that manufactured asbestos-containing materials.”