Primerus member John Brydon, managing partner of member firm Demler, Armstrong & Rowland, LLP in San Francisco, California, obtained a unanimous defense verdict for his client Pneumo Abex, LLC in an asbestos wrongful death mesothelioma case tried in Seattle, Washington. New York based national asbestos plaintiff firm Karst & Von Oiste name partner, Douglas von Oiste, asked the King County jury to return a verdict in excess of $2.5 million for the personal injury and subsequent wrongful death of a parts man at Consolidated Freightways who allegedly worked with and around asbestos containing Pneumo Abex manufactured heavy duty truck brake linings in the 1950s.
In what became a battle of medical and scientific evidence on whether working with asbestos containing brakes increases the risk of developing mesothelioma, the jury returned a 12-0 defense verdict determining that Pneumo Abex brake linings were not unreasonably dangerous and that it was not negligent for having failed to place warnings on its product. Brydon also argued that the likely sole cause of the decedent’s mesothelioma was exposure to potent amosite containing insulation products while assigned to the engine room of an escort aircraft carrier as a machinist's mate during World War II.
The jury deliberated for about 2 hours before returning its verdict in favor of Demler's client.
In addition to trying serious personal injury and bad faith cases for the firm, Mr. Brydon is a member of national trial teams for multiple defendants in asbestos litigation and is often asked to try mesothelioma cases around the country. John is the current chair of the Primerus Defense Institute.
Lasich vs Pneumo Abex LLC, Case #15-2-08593-0 SEA, Washington Superior Court King County, date of verdict July 27, 2016.
About Demler, Armstrong & Rowland, LLP
Demler Armstrong & Rowland was established in 1979 in Long Beach, California. For more than 35 years, our primary focus has been the defense of general liability and catastrophic injury lawsuits, construction litigation, insurance coverage disputes, and insurance bad faith claims. We are a litigation and trial firm with offices in both Northern and Southern California, and our lawyers are routinely called upon to try high-stakes cases in courtrooms throughout the state. With a core group of partners who have been together for more than 20 years, we have the size and experience to take on the largest cases, but are still small enough to be able to provide the level of personal service that our clients expect.
Demler, Armstrong & Rowland, LLP is a member of the International Society of Primerus Law Firms.