California Court of Appeal

In plaintiffs' suit for fraud, negligence, and strict products liability on failure to warn and design defect theories, claiming that exposure to asbestos from joint compounds contained in drywalls caused him to suffer from mesothelioma, judgment of the trial court in favor of the plaintiff and his wife is affirmed where: 1) trial court did not err in refusing to instruct the jury on the "sophisticated purchaser defense"; 2) defendant's claim that the jury's allocation of fault should be set aside is rejected as the jury was correctly instructed and there was substantial evidence for the jury's findings; 3) defendant's challenge to the substantial evidence for punitive damages is rejected; 4) defendant's claim that erroneous rulings on evidence compel reversal of the punitive damages award is rejected; and 5) the punitive damages award does not violate federal due process rights.

Appellate Information

• Decided 11/16/2010
• Published 11/16/2010

Judges

• ARMSTRONG

Court

• California Court of Appeal

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• David M. Axelrad, Dean A. Hanley