Jamie L. Day, et al. v. 3M Co. Inc., et al

Case Background

Jamie L. Day and Jennifer L. Bonito, co-executors of the Estate of their late mother, Bonnie J. Bonito, replaced her as Plaintiffs in a mesothelioma lawsuit. They filed a take-home asbestos lawsuit against approximately seventy Defendants.

“Take home” asbestos claims “involve workers’ family members who have been exposed to asbestos off-site, typically through contact with a directly exposed worker or that worker’s soiled work clothes.” (Mark A. Behrens, ‘What’s New in Asbestos Litigation?’)

The case was filed in Rhode Island’s Providence Plantation Superior Court. Judge Richard Licht presided over this case. [Case number: PC-2018-5044]

Cause

Mr. and Mrs. Bonito married in December 1966. During their marriage, Mr. Bonito worked at several businesses. In 1967, he started his own construction company, where he built and remodeled homes and basements, including framing walls and installing floor and ceiling tiles. He also operated a shop where he performed automotive work on trucks and equipment.

Mr. Bonito testified about his exposure to products made by the Defendants. After their marriage, Mrs. Bonito took over washing his clothes, including his work clothes and shoes. She did the laundry about three times a week or every couple of days. Mr. Bonito typically came home in the same clothes he wore to work. His clothes were often dusty, and Mrs. Bonito described shaking them out before washing them. She could see dust in the air while shaking the clothes. When asked if she breathed in the dust from his clothes, she confirmed, “I’m sure I did, yes.” She did not wear a mask while doing the laundry.

Injury

The Plaintiffs’ claims centered on the argument that Mrs. Bonito developed and ultimately died from malignant mesothelioma.

Damages

The Plaintiffs sought compensatory and punitive damages for the loss caused by their alleged negligence and failure to warn.

Key Arguments and Proceedings

Legal Representation

  • Plaintiff(s): Jamie L. Day | Jennifer L. Bonito
  • Defendant(s): 3M Company f/k/a Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing | A.O. Smith Corporation | A.W. Chesterton Company | Massey Ferguson AGCO Corporation of Delaware | Massey Ferguson AGCO Inc. | Allied Signal, Inc., n/k/a Honeywell International, Inc. | American Bilrite | American Standard, Inc., n/k/a Trane US, Inc. | Kewanee Boiler Company | Amtico International | Bayer Cropscience, Inc., f/k/a Amchem Products, Inc., a/k/a Benjamin Foster Co. | Bird | Borg Warner Morse TEC, Inc., f/k/a Borg Warner Corp. | Burnham Corporation | Carrier Corporation | Caterpillar | CBS Corporation f/k/a Viacom, Inc., f/k/a Westinghouse Electric Corp. | Certain-Teed Corp. | Cleaver Brooks Company | Crane Co. | Crane Co. (Successor in Interest to National Boilers) | Crown, Cork & Seal Company, Inc. | Cutler Hammer Inc. | D.A.P. Products | Ford Motor Company | Foster Wheeler | General Electric Company | Genuine Parts Company | Goodrich Corporation | Goulds Pumps | Graybar Electric Company | Greene Tweed & Co. | H.B. Smith Company | Hobart Corporation | Honeywell Inc. | Industrial Holdings Corp., Carborundum Co., Carborundum Grinding Wheel Co. | Ingersoll-Rand Company | J-M Manufacturing Company | John Crane | John Deere Company | John Doe | Karnak Corporation | Lincoln Electric Corp. | LUK Clutch Systems LLC | MACK Trucks Inc | Metropolitan Life Insurance Company | Mobil Oil Corporation n/k/a Exxon Mobil | National Automotive Parts Association | National Boiler Works | National Lumber Inc. | Navistar, Inc., f/k/a International Harvester Company | Nissan North America Inc. | St. Gobain Abrasives Inc. Norton Co. | P.I.C. Contractors | Packings & Insulations Corporations | Peerless Industries Inc. | Pneumo Abex Corp., Individually and as Successor-in-Interest to Abex Corp., and American Brake Bloc | Saint-Gobain Abrasives | Schaeffler Group USA Inc. | Schneider Electric USA, Inc., f/k/a Square D Company | Sunbeam Products Inc., f/k/a Sunbeam Corp., Individually and as Successor-in-Interest to Hurst Performance Inc., and Schiefer Manufacturing | Superior Boiler Works | Taco | The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company | Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc. | Union Carbide Corporation f/k/a Union Carbide Chemicals & Plastics Company | Uniroyal | Warren Pumps | Weil McLain
    • Counsel for Defendant(s): Shannon Marie O’Neil (lead counsel) | Brian D. Gross | Jennifer A. Whelan | Stephen T. Armato | Lawrence G. Cetrulo (lead counsel) | Matthew T. Jr. Giardina | Stephanie Mari Cadavid Batchelder | Brian A. Fielding (lead counsel) | Marisa K. Roman (lead counsel) | Charles K. Mone | John Raymond Felice (lead counsel) | James A. Ruggieri (lead counsel) | Matthew C. Oleyer (lead counsel) | Michael J. Chefitz (lead counsel) | Timothy James Keough | Rochelle Libid Gumapac (lead counsel) | Mark O. Denehy (lead counsel) | James R. Oswald | Stesha Emmanuel (lead counsel) | Margreta Vellucci (lead counsel) | Wayne E. George (lead counsel) | Stephen P. Cooney (lead counsel) | Cassandra L. Feeney (lead counsel) | Jonathan F. Tabasky | Nancy Kelly (lead counsel) | Tierney Marie Chadwick (lead counsel) | Anthony J. Sbarra | Randolph Bart Totten (lead counsel) | Paul E. Dwyer (lead counsel) | Philip M. Hirshberg | Holly M. Polglase (lead counsel)

Claims

The Plaintiffs claimed that Mrs. Bonito developed and died from malignant mesothelioma due to exposure to asbestos dust. They argued that the exposure occurred while she was washing her late ex-husband’s work clothes. They brought various allegations including negligence, strict liability, breach of express and implied warranty, punitive damages, and conspiracy.

By the time of trial, Defendant Union Carbide Corp. (UCC) remained while Plaintiffs settled their claims or reached an agreement with other Defendants.

Defense

Graybar Electric Co. Inc. and Union Carbide Corp. (UCC) jointly filed a motion to exclude Richard L. Kradin, who was hired by Day and Bonito to testify on specific causation. They also sought to exclude Michael J. Ellenbecker from testifying that their products increased Bonito’s risk of developing mesothelioma and that their warnings were insufficient. Graybar requested to exclude both experts from testifying that its products specifically caused Bonito’s mesothelioma. UCC asked the judge to prevent either expert from testifying that it supplied the asbestos found in the products identified in the case.

Expert Testimony

Richard Kradin, M.D., a pulmonologist and pathologist was retained to provide an opinion on the specific cause of Bonito’s mesothelioma.

On October 11, 2024, Justice Richard Licht ruled that Kradin used a valid scientific method to reach his conclusion. He rejected the defendants’ reliance on Sweredoski v. Alfa Laval, Inc., stating they misinterpreted the case. He clarified that Sweredoski required plaintiffs to show frequent or regular exposure to a defendant’s asbestos-containing product to establish liability, but it did not impose additional requirements on expert testimony.

Justice Licht explained that DiPetrillo v. Dow Chemical Co. governed whether an expert could testify. He noted that Sweredoski did not impose a separate standard for scientific validity, and a plaintiff could demonstrate exposure through expert or lay testimony.

The judge also ruled that Ellenbecker’s opinion on Bonito’s increased risk was admissible. However, Ellenbecker could not testify about the adequacy of the specific warnings on the defendants’ products. He could discuss how such warnings would affect workers in environments like the homes Mr. Bonito worked on.

Finally, Justice Licht found sufficient evidence to support the experts’ conclusion that UCC supplied asbestos to Georgia-Pacific for use in the Ready-Mix product, allowing testimony about UCC’s products.

Jury Verdict

The case was tried against Union Carbide. After nine days of proceedings and nearly two days of deliberation, the jury reached a verdict on November 21, 2024. The jury found Union Carbide’s products were not defectively designed and that the company did not fail to warn of asbestos dangers. Additionally, the jury found that the company did not neglect to warn about the potential dangers of asbestos.

Court Documents:

Documents are available for purchase upon request at jurimatic@exlitem.com