NAM joins in amicus brief regarding Ohio asbestos case

The National Association of Manufacturers has joined five other business groups in an amicus brief urging the Supreme Court of Ohio to uphold a state law, the first of its kind, that defers claims of injury or illness related to asbestos exposure until the claimants offer evidence of impairment. The purpose of the law is to ensure that resources needed to compensate deserving asbestos claimants are not depleted in premature, meritless or speculative litigation.

Other organizations participating in the brief are the American Insurance Association, the National Federation of Independent Business Legal Foundation, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies, Property Casualty Insurers Association of America, and the American Chemistry Council. The NAM and these organizations have submitted amicus briefs in similar cases involving asbestos claims in other states.

The Ohio case at issue, Ackison v. Anchor Packing Company, involves an attempt by the estate of the late Danny Ackison to establish a cause-and-effect relationship between asbestos and his death. But the plaintiff’s death certificate states that his cause of death was congestive heart failure and aortic stenosis.

“Such speculative actions deplete resources needed to provide timely and adequate compensation to deserving claimants who can objectively demonstrate an impairing condition for which exposure to asbestos was a substantial contributing factor,” the brief states.

The issue of requiring asbestos claimants to demonstrate injury or illness strikes to the heart of the asbestos crisis that has already contributed to the bankruptcy of 85 companies and destroyed tens of thousands of jobs with no end in sight.

“Studies indicate that up to 90 percent of recent asbestos plaintiffs have no physical impairment that affects their daily activities,” the brief states.

The presence of the non-sick on court dockets and in settlement negotiations “inevitably diverts legal attention and economic resources away from the claimants with severe asbestos disabilities who need help right now.”

The full amicus brief in Anchor Packing is posted at http://www.nam.org/briefs.

The National Association of Manufacturers is the nation’s largest industrial trade association, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the NAM has 11 additional offices across the country. Visit www.nam.org for more information about manufacturing and the economy.