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Porter Hayden Co. v. Bullinger5/15/1998
Rodowsky, J., concurs and dissents.
We granted the petition for writ of certiorari presented by Owens Corning Fiberglass Corporation (Owens Corning) and Porter Hayden Company (Porter Hayden), petitioners, to address three issues arising out of verdicts rendered against them in a consolidated asbestos-related personal injury action in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City. The issues presented are: (1) whether the trial court had the authority to determine the application of co-defendant contribution claims when a federal court was to address the application of Maryland set-off principles in a pending federal class action proceeding involving the parties to the instant appeal; (2) whether the trial court erred in refusing to disclose to petitioners the amount in the settlement agreements negotiated between the plaintiffs and other joint tort-feasors; and (3) whether a default judgment constitutes a finding of liability for purposes of the application of section 3-1404 of the Courts and Judicial Proceedings Article. Because of our resolution of the second issue, it is unnecessary for us to address the first issue presented by petitioners. We shall also address the third issue.
I. FACTS
This appeal requires us to examine two separate sets of facts that arose out of actions filed in different courts. The first set of facts involved two federal actions: one bankruptcy adjudication and one class action settlement. The second set involves the instant appeal. We shall discuss these facts separately.
A. The Federal Cases
In 1982, Johns-Manville Corporation (Johns-Manville), a manufacturer of asbestos-related products, filed for bankruptcy primarily because of numerous asbestos-related claims brought against it. As a result of the Johns-Manville bankruptcy, the Manville Personal Injury Settlement Trust (Manville Trust) was created to compensate persons injured by asbestos-containing products manufactured by Johns-Manville. See In re Johns-Manville Corp., 68 B.R. 618 (S.D.N.Y. 1986), aff'd sub nom, Kane v. Johns-Manville Corp., 843 F.2d 636 (2d Cir. 1988)(Manville I).
In 1990, a class action for all of the Manville Trust beneficiaries, which included the parties in this case, was created to supersede all litigation pending against the trust in both federal and state courts. The class was created because it became apparent the trust was inadequately funded to compensate all possible beneficiaries. In 1991, a settlement regarding the distribution of Manville Trust funds was reached. See In re Joint E. & S. Dists. Asbestos Litig., 129 B.R. 710 (E.D.N.Y. & S.D.N.Y. 1991)(Manville II). The Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, however, vacated approval of the settlement. See In re Joint E. & S. Dists. Asbestos Litig., 982 F.2d 721 (2d Cir. 1992)(Manville III).
Following the remand, the Trust Beneficiaries again reached a settlement. Pursuant to this settlement agreement, the Manville Trust was recapitalized and all claims against the Trust were to be removed from the various tort systems and processed according to administrative procedures called the Trust Distribution Process (TDP). Pursuant to the TDP, numerous categories of diseases resulting from exposure to asbestos were created and a monetary value placed on each category of disease. The TDP also enumerated the methods by which a co-defendant's set-off would be calculated in litigation involving the Trust Beneficiaries. The Stipulation of Settlement, however, explicitly excluded claims arising in Maryland with respect to the appropriate set-off provisions. The Stipulation of Settlement provided: Section H.3 of the TDP, which deals with calculation of set-off, shall not
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