Court: Supreme Court of New York, New York County (NYCAL)
In this asbestos action, defendant Burnham LLC moved for partial summary judgment to dismiss plaintiffs’ punitive damages claim. Specifically, Burnham argued that asbestos exposure from its boilers would fall below TLV or PEL/OSHA limits, and that it never received workers’ compensation claims for asbestos-related disease.
Ultimately, the court determined that plaintiff proffered evidence that demonstrated Burnham failed to warn plaintiff about the hazards of asbestos. Per the court, a reasonable juror could find that Burnham’s knowledge and use of asbestos in their boilers constituted a prioritization of their corporate benefits over plaintiff’s safety. Thus, Burnham failed to demonstrate their prima facie burden that punitive damages were not warranted. Because issues of fact remained as to preclude summary judgment on punitive damages, the court denied Burnham’s motion in its entirety.
Read the full decision here.
