Simon Greenstone Panatier Secures $12.1 Million Verdict in Ohio Asbestos Mesothelioma Case
DALLAS – Simon Greenstone Panatier trial lawyers secured a total $12 million verdict on behalf of an 83-year-old Korean War veteran who contracted mesothelioma after years of working with asbestos-containing packing material.
On Friday, following the jury’s unanimous decision for punitive damages, Lorain County Court of Common Pleas Judge Christopher Rothgery added $6 million to the initial jury award of $6.1 million.
Robert Mitchell worked in the stock room at the Pfaudler Co. plant in Elyria, Ohio, for more than 40 years. His responsibilities included assisting in the shipping of specialized glass-coated steel bowls used in chemical and pharmaceutical manufacturing. The work required spending several hours every week cutting rope packing with a band saw, which threw asbestos particles into the air. Despite the packing material’s high concentration of blue crocidolite asbestos, Pfaudler was never warned of the potential dangers or advised on proper handling by Crane Packing Co. (now John Crane, Inc.), the material’s manufacturer.
Diagnosed in 2016, Mitchell passed away from the effects of mesothelioma later that year at the age of 83. Single, with no children, his only surviving relative is his 86-year-old brother, James.
Mitchell was represented at trial by Ms. Peterson, Frank Wathen and Sean Kerley of Simon Greenstone Panatier, and Joshua Grunda of Bevan & Associates.
The case is the Estate of Robert William Mitchell v. John Crane Inc., Lorain County Ohio Court of Common Pleas, 18-CV-196597.
