Steptoe & Johnson

West Virginia Court Amends Asbestos Case Management Order

The Case Management Order that applies to West Virginia asbestos cases has recently been revised to require plaintiffs to provide more details about the money they receive or are expected to receive from bankruptcy trusts. The amendment will assist defendants in determining the payments from bankruptcy trusts and quantifying the amounts available for reducing any related jury verdict.

On March 3, 2010 Judge Ronald E. Wilson entered an Order that will change the disclosure of information in asbestos cases. In asbestos litigation, plaintiffs often obtain monetary payments from bankruptcy trusts that have been established by companies to provide compensation to people alleging claims as a result of asbestos exposure. The March 3, 2010 Order requires the plaintiffs to identify all claims that have been or will be made to a bankruptcy trust, provide a copy of the documents that support the plaintiffs’ request for trust proceeds, and assist the defendants to obtain discovery from the bankruptcy trusts. Further, if a jury verdict is assessed against a defendant, that defendant will receive set-offs for the amount of the trust claims received in order to reduce any jury verdict and that defendant will obtain the assignment rights to seek monetary recoveries from bankruptcy trusts that have not yet made monetary payments to the plaintiffs. Legislation has been considered by the West Virginia Legislature for several years to require the relief granted in the Order. That topic was discussed in the Steptoe & Johnson PLLC Client Update from February 27, 2009 entitled “Asbestos Legislation Related to Bankruptcy Trusts is Proposed in West Virginia.”

The March 3, 2010 Order does not apply to cases that are placed on the docket relative to railroad claims. Click here to download a copy of the Order.