7th Circuit
Judicial Shakeup Signals Reform In Madison County
January 31, 2005 at 07:00 PM
12 minute read
Tuesday, Oct. 5, 2004, started out like any other day in Illinois' Madison County Circuit Court. Paul Palmer, a Louisiana man, was suing 87 companies–among them Viacom, Ford and BP–for allegedly causing his mesothelioma, a cancer related to asbestos exposure.
Palmer lived and worked in Louisiana his entire life. His residence was only 15 miles from the Baton Rouge courthouse. His asbestos exposure occurred in Texas and Louisiana, and his doctors were based in Baton Rouge. The only real connection the case had to Madison County was that it was filed there.
But Palmer's suit isn't unique. Plaintiffs filed 953 asbestos cases in Madison County in 2003, about 75 percent of which were from out of state. Most of those plaintiffs walked away with hefty settlements.
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
Trending Stories
- 1The Law Firm Disrupted: For Big Law Names, Shorter is Sweeter
- 2Wine, Dine and Grind (Through the Weekend): Summer Associates Thirst For Experience in 'Real Matters'
- 3The 'Biden Effect' on Senior Attorneys: Should I Stay or Should I Go?
- 4BD Settles Thousands of Bard Hernia Mesh Lawsuits
- 5First Lawsuit Filed Alleging Contraceptive Depo-Provera Caused Brain Tumor
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250