http://www.lexisnexis.com/mealeys/news.aspx Headline Lead Legal News from LexisNexis® en-us http://www.lexisnexis.com/mealeys/images/lexismealeyslogo.gif 130 29 http://www.lexisnexis.com/mealeys/news.aspx Copyright 2012 http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-7%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%201%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank BALTIMORE - A jury in the Baltimore City Circuit Court on May 2 awarded lead exposure plaintiff $1.29 million in damages for brain injuries she sustained after prolonged exposure to lead-based paint at a home she lived in from her birth in 1995 until October 1997 (Amafica Woodland v. Housing Authority of Baltimore City, No. 24-C-09-002708, Md. Cir.; Baltimore City). http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-7%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%202%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank BALTIMORE - A Maryland federal judge on April 30 remanded a lead exposure class action to state court, saying the claims against Kennedy Krieger Institute (KKI) researchers do not implicate, and are not preempted by, federal law (David Armstrong Jr., et al. v. Kennedy Krieger Institute Inc., No. WDQ-11-3380; See October 2011, Page 4; 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 60383). http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-7%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%203%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank ST. LOUIS - A Missouri federal judge on April 23 granted summary judgment to an insurer after finding that broad pollution exclusion clauses in its policies protect it from having to defend a lead company in a toxic contamination lawsuit (The Doe Run Resources Corp. v. Lexington Insurance Co., No. 4:10-cv-2897 AGF, E.D. Mo.; 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 56412; See November 2012, Page 9). http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-7%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%204%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank BALTIMORE - A Maryland federal judge on April 23 held that Allstate Insurance Co. is collaterally estopped from seeking a declaratory judgment regarding coverage under an insurance policy it issued to the owner of a lead-contaminated house. The federal judge concluded that the action is identical to one the insurer filed in 2011 but was dismissed for lack of personal jurisdiction (Allstate Insurance Co. v. Jack Cherry, et al., No. ELH-11-2898, D. Md.; 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 57157). http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-7%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%205%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank NEW YORK - A New York justice on April 26 denied an insurer's motion for summary judgment in a declaratory judgment cause of action, saying the insurer did not properly disclaim coverage to its insureds in an underlying lead-based paint exposure suit. The justice further dismissed the insurer's default judgment claim against the lead-based paint claimants as untimely (Tower Insurance Co. of New York v. Metro Property Group LLC, et al., No. 106315/09, N.Y. Sup., New York Co.; 2012 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 2011). http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-7%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%206%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank BOSTON - The First Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on May 8 affirmed the dismissal of a lead paint disclosure cause of action, saying the claim was filed six years after the injury accrued. While the federal law mandating disclosure of lead-based paint at a property does not have a statute of limitations, all reasonable interpretations reflect that a three-year limitations period is warranted, the court said (Jameson C. Randall v. Laconia, NH, No. 11-1412, 1st Cir.; 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 9338). http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-7%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%207%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank PLAINTIFF Abern, Steven, M.D. pediatric neurologist, Lutheran General Hospital, Park Ridge, Ill.; 11/21/01, Page 9 http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-6%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%201%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank NEW LONDON, Conn. - A Connecticut judge on March 20 denied a landlord defendant's motion to strike several negligence and unfair trade practices claims against him, saying the plaintiffs sufficiently pleaded facts to show that the landlord may have been reckless when he allowed the plaintiffs to live in a residence with lead-based paint and when he allowed the plaintiffs to renovate the property without taking precautions (Edward Monsees v. Leonard Peta, et al., No. CV106005376, Conn. Super., New London Dist.; 2012 Conn. Super. LEXIS 770). http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-6%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%202%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank BOSTON - The Massachusetts Appeals Court on April 5 affirmed the dismissal of a contributory negligence action a current building owner filed against the shareholders of the previous owner. The appeals court concluded that the corporate owner of the lead-contaminated building had ceased to exist and any contribution action filed against it would be barred by state statute (Matteo Gallo v. James E. Corsano, et al., No. 11-P-911, Mass. App.; 2012 Mass App. Unpub. LEXIS 432). http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-6%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%203%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank ST. LOUIS - Subsidiaries of an insured which operated a lead smelter plant are owed coverage under the insured's policies because the policies clearly state that coverage is afforded to "all affiliated or subsidiary companies as they are now or may hereafter be constituted," the Eastern District Missouri Court of Appeals said March 20 (The Renco Group Inc., et al. v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd's London et al., No. ED96801, Mo. App., E.D., Div. 3; 2012 Mo. App. LEXIS 339). http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-6%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%204%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank TROY, NY - A New York justice on March 26 denied a lead-exposure plaintiff's motion for a judicial subpoena, as well as several orders preventing the defendants from making "speculative arguments or testimony" regarding the cause of the plaintiff's alleged injury, explaining that the plaintiff failed to meet her burden showing that such protective orders are necessary at this point in the legal action (Melissa Van Wert v. Elizabeth Randall, et al., No. 228021, N.Y. Sup., Rensselaer Co.; 2012 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 1299). http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-6%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%205%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank PITTSBURGH - A federal judge in Pennsylvania on March 7 denied attorneys fees to an attorney seeking research data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and other federal agencies related to a federally funded study known as Low-Level Environmental Lead Exposure and Children's Intellectual Function: An International Pooled Analysis. The judge concluded that the plaintiff did not substantively, or procedurally, prevail in her action against the government in seeking the data under the federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (Amy K. Pohl v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, et al., No. 09-1480, W.D. Pa.; 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 30789). http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-6%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%206%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank NEW YORK - The First Department New York Supreme Court Appellate Division on March 20 affirmed the denial of a defense motion for summary judgment, saying a landlord defendant failed to show evidence that none of the alleged injuries could have been proximately caused or exacerbated by the infant plaintiff's elevated blood-lead levels (Angelina Melendez, et al. v. Maria Dorville, et al., No. 7121, 350748-08, N.Y. Sup., App. Div., 1st Dept.; 2012 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 2049). http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-6%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%207%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank PLAINTIFF Abern, Steven, M.D. pediatric neurologist, Lutheran General Hospital, Park Ridge, Ill.; 11/21/01, Page 9 http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-5%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%201%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank SAN JOSE, Calif. - A California judge on Feb. 24 denied two motions in limine filed by the plaintiffs in the Santa Clara public nuisance lead paint action regarding the admission of evidence of individual California properties from trial. The judge found that the municipalities failed to cite any authority to support their characterization of the presence of lead throughout California as a single public nuisance (Santa Clara County, et al. v. Atlantic Richfield Co., et al., No. 00-788657, Calif. Super., Santa Clara Co.; See January 2012, Page 4). http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-5%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%202%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank ST. CROIX, Virgin Islands - A federal judge on Feb. 1 ruled that the Virgin Islands' government and its commissioner of the Department of Planning and Natural Resources failed to show that exceptional circumstances existed to warrant the disclosure of data and photographs taken by two nontestifying experts for defendants in a Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) case (Commissioner of the Department of Planning and Natural Resources, et al. v. Century Aluminum Company, et al., No. 06-62, D. Virgin Islands). http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-5%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%203%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank CLEVELAND - The Eighth Appellate District Ohio Court of Appeals for Cuyahoga County on March 1 affirmed a trial court order finding that internal communications regarding meetings and communications with potential witnesses is not protected under the attorney-client privilege. The appeals court further found that documents related to those meetings are not protected under the work product doctrine if it is shown there is good cause that such documents can be produced (The Sherwin-Williams Co. v. Motley Rice, et al., No. 96927, Ohio App., 8th Dist., Cuyahoga Co.; 2012 Ohio App. LEXIS 703). http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-5%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%204%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank TRENTON, N.J. - The New Jersey Superior Court Appellate Division on Feb. 6 affirmed the dismissal of a landlord negligence action, saying the plaintiff failed to show any genuine issue of material fact indicating a causal connection between the conditions in an apartment and elevated blood-lead levels in a minor child (Samir Baker, et al. v. Robert Peoples, et al. v. Willye Daniels, No. A-4284-10T1, N.J. Super., App. Div.; 2012 N.J. Super. Unpub. LEXIS 245). http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-5%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%205%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank ALBANY, NY - The justice in the Albany County, N.Y., Supreme Court on Feb. 7 denied a motion for summary judgment filed by a defendant in a lead-paint exposure lawsuit against the property owner and the owner's maintenance business (Dalton Dutcher v. Robert M. Vandeloo, et al., No. 7584-08, N.Y. Sup., Albany Co.; 2012 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 565). http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-5%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%206%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank NEW YORK - A New York Supreme Court justice on March 1 held that a nonprofit organization that provides transactional and permanent housing and support services for individuals in New York City may be held liable for lead-exposure injuries that a subleased sustained while residing at one of its rental units (Tamika Jackson, et al. v. The Dunbar LLC, et al., No. 108586/2008, N.Y. Sup., New York Co.; 2012 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 919). http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-5%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%207%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank ATLANTA - A federal magistrate judge in Alabama did not err in finding that a consent decree entered into between plaintiff companies and the U.S. government barred the companies' claim for cost recovery under Section 107(a) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA), an 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel ruled March 6 in affirming an award of summary judgment to the defendants (Solutia Inc., et al. v. McWane Inc., et al., No. 10-15639, 11th Cir.). http://www.lexis.com/research/xlink?canceldest=form&keyenum=25271&keytnum=0&searchtype=get&search=21-5%20Mealey%27s%20Litig.%20Rep.%20Lead%208%20(2012)&view=full&ORIGINATION_CODE=00144 target=_blank PLAINTIFF Abern, Steven, M.D. pediatric neurologist, Lutheran General Hospital, Park Ridge, Ill.; 11/21/01, Page 9