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Owens-Corning Fiberglas Corp. v. Garrett8/28/1996
ecovering and block insulation, as well as other asbestos products.
Mr. Garrett then went to work as an electrician, and testified that around 1950, for approximately one year, he worked on a job at Crownsville Hospital near co-workers who were covering pipes using asbestos products and creating asbestos dust which got on his clothes. He identified during his deposition the products used as "some of the ones that we have said before." This statement apparently referred to his testimony about materials at Maryland Shipbuilding and Drydock; Garrett did specifically but tentatively mention Kaylo.
In 1955 he went to work for Western Electric as an electrician, where he worked for the next thirty years. During his tenure at Western Electric, Mr. Garrett regularly used and cut gasket material containing asbestos. His work with the gasket material created a small amount of asbestos dust, but Mr. Garrett also worked overtime weekends at least twice per month as a pipecoverer for Western Electric; it was on these shifts that he was exposed to asbestos dust from the pipecovering and the "mud" (the cement containing asbestos) used to seal the joints of the pipes. He again identified the brand names of the products they used for pipecovering at Western Electric as the same products he had used at Maryland Shipbuilding and Drydock in 1942. His co-workers who testified at trial also identified Kaylo as one of the products used.
Mr. Garrett tentatively identified PH as one of the insulating contractors he worked with and around. One witness, John Lantz, also testified that PH was an outside contractor performing insulation work at Western Electric during 1957-59, installing asbestos pipecovering among other tasks.
Mr. Garrett developed mesothelioma in 1993, and died before trial.
D. William Hohman
William Hohman worked for Continental Oil Company (hereinafter "Conoco") from 1952 until his retirement in 1986. His variety of jobs included mechanic helper, loader helper, loader, gauger, braker for the engineers, fire equipment man, and safety inspector. As Mr. Hohman died of mesothelioma in 1986, his co-workers had to testify at trial to the frequency and proximity of Mr. Hohman's exposure to asbestos products and asbestos dust. Otto Biden, who worked as a steamfitter in the "boiler house" at Conoco, described Mr. Hohman's exposure as essentially constant, testifying that "Bill Hohman, William Hohman was there on every job that was even done at Continental Oil" in the boiler house, where asbestos was in constant use.
Because not all the witnesses at trial knew Mr. Hohman, plaintiffs put on evidence from which his exposure could be inferred. Eyewitnesses identified exactly which asbestos products and suppliers were present at the Conoco plant during Mr. Hohman's tenure. Documentary evidence of plant operations also confirmed the purchase of certain products, including Kaylo. We review the factual evidence in Mr. Hohman's case in depth in part III, section C of the opinion, but note preliminarily that some of the witnesses stated that Kaylo was in use at Conoco during the relevant time period.
E. Trial History
The original complaints of the plaintiffs named dozens of defendants, who were all deemed automatically to be cross-claim defendants as well ; only the three defendants/appellants before us today were found liable. Presentation of evidence in the consolidated trial began on April 7, 1994. Almost four months later, on July 22, 1994, the jury returned its verdicts. In the case of Harvey Scruggs, the jury found OCF and PH jointly and severally liable in negligence and strict liability for compensatory damages in th
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