 |
 |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|
|
|
|
Jurich v. John Crane3/31/2005
FOR PUBLICATION
Case Summary
Carole Jurich and Esther Serna, individually and as administrators of the estates of Nicholas Jurich and Louis Serna (collectively "the Appellants"), appeal the trial court's grant of summary judgment in favor of John Crane, Inc., WTI Rust Holdings, Inc., and Mallinckrodt Group, Inc. (collectively "the Appellees"). We affirm.
Issue
We restate the issue before us as whether the trial court properly concluded that the ten-year statute of repose of the Product Liability Act ("PLA") barred the Appellants' claims against the Appellees for asbestos-related diseases that caused the decedents' deaths.
Facts
Nicholas Jurich worked at Inland Steel in East Chicago from 1946 to 1986. During this time, he was exposed to asbestos from products and materials distributed by Appellees John Crane and WTI or its predecessor. In 1996, more than ten years after his retirement, Mr. Jurich was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a rare cancer of the lining of the lungs almost exclusively associated with asbestos exposure. In 1997, Mr. Jurich and his wife Carole sued John Crane, WTI, and others seeking damages for personal injuries and loss of consortium. Mr. Jurich died later that year.
The trial court granted John Crane's and WTI's motion for summary judgment, which contended that Carole's suit was time-barred by the ten-year statute of repose of the PLA, Indiana Code Section 34-20-3-1. On appeal, we reversed and held that the statute of repose was unconstitutional under Article 1, ยง 12 of the Indiana Constitution as applied to Jurich in part because there was scientific evidence that his lungs were injured by his every exposure to asbestos, within the ten-year repose period, even if his illness did not manifest itself until many years later. Jurich v. Garlock, Inc., 759 N.E.2d 1066 (Ind. Ct. App. 2001) ("Jurich I").
Louis Serna was also employed at Inland Steel, in his case from 1942 to 1985, and was exposed to asbestos from products delivered by Appellees Mallinckrodt and WTI or its predecessor. He was diagnosed with mesothelioma in 1998. He and his wife, Esther, filed suit later that year, and Mr. Serna died in 1999.
The trial court granted summary judgment in favor of WTI and Mallinckrodt, again because of the statute of repose. On appeal, a different panel of this court than decided Jurich I did not reach the question of the statute of repose's constitutionality. Instead, the panel reversed summary judgment on the basis that WTI and Mallinckrodt fell under Indiana Code Section 34-20-3-2, which is an exception to the ten-year statute of repose for those who "mined and sold commercial asbestos." Harris v. A.C. & S., Inc., 766 N.E.2d 383 (Ind. Ct. App. 2002).
Our supreme court granted transfer in Jurich I, Harris, and several other asbestos cases. In so doing, it adopted that part of Jurich I holding that the exception to the statute of repose did not apply to defendants such as the Appellees who sold asbestos-containing products, but only to entities who produced and distributed raw asbestos. Jurich v. Garlock, Inc., 785 N.E.2d 1093, 1095 n.2 (Ind. 2003) ("Jurich II"). However, the court disagreed with Jurich I's resolution of the constitutional question. It held that with respect to asbestos claims and the PLA statute of repose, "a cause of action accrues at that point at which a physician who is reasonably experienced at making such diagnoses could have diagnosed the individual with an asbestos-related illness or disease." Allied Signal, Inc. v. Ott, 785 N.E.2d 1068, 1075 (Ind. 2003). The court also held that if a disease has actually manifested itself within the ten-yea
Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 Indiana Personal Injury Attorneys
Personal Injury Lawyers
|
| |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|