The First Department determined the jury’s finding of fault for failure to warn in this asbestos case was supported by the evidence. Defendant used asbestos in the manufacture of its boilers where plaintiff’s decedent worked. However, the First Department reduced the trial court’s nearly $10,000,000 award for past pain and suffering to $4, 500,000:
The jury’s verdict is based on sufficient evidence and is not against the weight of the evidence … . The evidence adduced at trial demonstrates that, while defendant did not manufacture asbestos, for decades it heavily promoted the use of the type of asbestos insulation to which the decedent was exposed. Further, defendant often sold asbestos products along with its boilers and advertised asbestos as the preferred insulation product to use for its boilers. The evidence also shows that defendant was aware of the dangers of asbestos exposure well before the decedent’s first exposure in the late 1970s, and that the decedent was never advised by defendant or his employers about those dangers. Accordingly, there is no reason to disturb the jury’s determination that defendant had a legal obligation to warn workers such as the decedent of the hazards of asbestos exposure, and that defendant’s failure to warn proximately caused the decedent’s mesothelioma … . Peraica v A.O. Smith Water Prods. Co., 2016 NY Slip Op 06537, 1st Dept 10-6-16
PRODUCTS LIABILITY (BOILER MANUFACTURER LIABLE FOR FAILURE TO WARN EMPLOYEES OF THE HAZARDS OF WORKING WITH ASBESTOS; DAMAGES FOR PAST PAIN AND SUFFERING REDUCED FROM NEARLY $10 TO $4.5 MILLION)/ASBESTOS (BOILER MANUFACTURER LIABLE FOR FAILURE TO WARN EMPLOYEES OF THE HAZARDS OF WORKING WITH ASBESTOS; DAMAGES FOR PAST PAIN AND SUFFERING REDUCED FROM NEARLY $10 TO $4.5 MILLION)/BOILERS (BOILER MANUFACTURER LIABLE FOR FAILURE TO WARN EMPLOYEES OF THE HAZARDS OF WORKING WITH ASBESTOS; DAMAGES FOR PAST PAIN AND SUFFERING REDUCED FROM NEARLY $10 TO $4.5 MILLION)