John Berning, Bernadine Berning v. A.P. Green Industries Inc., et al.
Published: Mar. 23, 2002 | Result Date: Jan. 24, 2002 | Filing Date: Jan. 1, 1900 |Case number: 319733 Verdict – $1,125,580
Judge
Court
San Francisco Superior
Attorneys
Plaintiff
Defendant
Experts
Plaintiff
Barry Ben-Zion Ph.D.
(technical)
Richard Cohen
(medical)
Barry R. Horn M.D.
(medical)
Richard L. Hatfield
(technical)
Defendant
William G. Hughson
(medical)
Sheldon Rabinovitz
(technical)
Facts
The plaintiff, a 77-year-old retired window glazier from Wichita, Kansas, was exposed to
asbestos at his home while changing the brakes on his familyÆs personal vehicles. In January
2001, the plaintiff John Berning, father of nine adult children, was diagnosed with malignant
mesothelioma, a cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. BerningÆs prognosis is very poor and
he has been given only a short time to live.
Other Information
The jury awarded the plaintiff compensatory damages and found the defendant, Allied Signal Inc., 100 percent at fault for the plaintiffÆs injury and damages. The jury found that Allied Signal Inc. was negligent in the manufacture of its asbestos-containing brake products produced in the 1960s and 1970s and used by the plaintiff in brake repair work. The jury also found the defendantÆs asbestos-containing brake products to be defective in design. However, the jury did not find Wanton conduct, so no punitive damages were awarded. The court found that Kansas Law applies to his case and, in so doing, dismissed plaintiff Bernadine Berning from the lawsuit, as a loss of consortium claim is not recognized in Kansas by the spouse of an injured individual. The court also, pursuant to Kansas law, limited noneconomic damages to $250,000.
Deliberation
six days
Length
three weeks
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