California Court of Appeal

In an asbestos case, the trial court's grant of summary judgment to machine manufacturer defendant is reversed where: 1) the recent decision from the Second District Court of Appeal in Sherman v. Hennessy Industries, Inc. (2015) 237 Cal.App.4th 1133, is directly on point, and is persuasive because the proper test is not the 'exclusive use' standard argued by defendant and relied on by the trial court, but whether the 'inevitable use' of defendant's machines would expose a worker like plaintiff to asbestos dust absent safety protection or adequate warning; and 2) because plaintiff produced sufficient evidence to raise a triable issue of fact as to whether the 'inevitable use' standard was met, the trial court erred in granting summary judgment.

Appellate Information

• Published 2016/06/07

Judges

• RUVOLO

Court

• California Court of Appeal

Counsel