 |
 |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|
|
|
|
Christensen v. Philip Morris USA Inc.6/8/2005
Richardson v. Philip Morris Inc. was filed in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City against various manufacturers of tobacco, their Maryland distributors, and others, seeking damages on behalf of the named plaintiffs and similarly situated "Maryland residents (a) who have suffered or continue to suffer from physical injuries or disease caused by smoking cigarettes or using smokeless tobacco products, and/or (b) who are nicotine dependent and plead addiction as an injury." Philip Morris Inc., 358 Md. at 700. The Richardson plaintiffs moved for class certification in September 1997. Id. at 701. In January 1998, pursuant to Md. Rule 2-231(b)(3), the circuit court approved for class action treatment some eight tort and contract causes of action, one consumer protection claim, and one claim for "medical monitoring." Id. Thereafter, the circuit court issued an order certifying two classes. In general, the classes consisted of: a) Maryland residents (or their estates and families) who, as current or former smokers, sustained injury, illness, or death caused by cigarettes, and b) those who were "nicotine dependent persons...." Id. at 701. Unhappy with the class certification, the defendants filed a petition in the Court of Appeals for a writ of mandamus or prohibition, asking that Court to "direct" the circuit court to vacate the class certification. Id. at 699.
Christensen was not a named party in Richardson, nor did he move to intervene in the class action. However, he was a potential class member. Moreover, all of the appellees (except Giant) were aware of Christiansen's status as a putative class member. In particular, on May 11, 1999, Christensen provided an affidavit for the plaintiffs in the Richardson case, describing his smoking history and the history of his lung cancer. And, in June 1999, he provided a videotaped de bene esse deposition in the Richardson case. At his deposition, Christensen was represented by appellants' present counsel, who were also the attorneys for the plaintiffs in Richardson.
In an opinion dated May 16, 2000, issued in the Richardson case, the Court of Appeals granted the relief of mandamus and ordered the circuit court to decertify the class. Philip Morris Inc., 358 Md. at 699, 787-88. Thereafter, on March 13, 2001, the parties in the Richardson case filed a "Stipulation of Dismissal" in the circuit court, in which they agreed that, for the purpose of limitations, any claims reasserted by the named parties within six months of the dismissal would be deemed filed on the same date that Richardson had been filed. The Stipulation, however, did not extend to the claims of the parties in the case sub judice. As noted, the suit at issue here was filed on August 13, 2001.
In September 2003, appellees moved for summary judgment in the case sub judice, claiming that appellants' claims were barred by limitations. According to appellees, Christensen had both actual and inquiry notice of his claims more than three years before suit was filed on August 13, 2001. Appellees asserted, in part:
By his own admission, Mr. Christensen knew before August 13, 1998 that he had lung cancer, which he attributed to smoking, and was thus on notice of his possible claims more than three years before suit was filed. Indeed, Mr. Christensen had reason to suspect, as early as the Fall of 1997 and clearly no later than the Spring of 1998, that he might have been injured by smoking, and was thus on at least inquiry notice of his potential claims by that earlier time. Plaintiffs' survival claims, which were not filed until more than three years later, are thus time-barred.
Further, because any direct claim by Mr. Christensen is time-barred, Plaintiffs' wrongful dea
Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Maryland Personal Injury Attorneys
Personal Injury Lawyers
|
| |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|
By using the system, you agree to TERMS OF SERVICE
|