Nj court allows spanish workers to sue

New Jersey - A New Jersey appellate panel has ruled that fifteen Spanish workers will be allowed to sue an American company in a New Jersey state court. The Spanish workers claim that they developed asbestos-related diseases while employed to work on United States Navy ships in Spain. The Spanish workers are attempting to sue manufacturer Owens-Illinois Inc. The New Jersey appellate court ruled in favor 3-0, overturning a lower court’s previous ruling which dismissed the Spanish workers’ lawsuit on jurisdictional grounds. The workers claim that between 1950 and 1988they were exposed to asbestos in insulation products made at Owens-Illinois plants in New Jersey. They were employed by the Navy or by private contractors, and worked at military installations in Rota or Cadiz which were jointly owned by the United States and Spain. They filed their lawsuit claims in 2004. John C. Garde, an attorney for Owens-Illinois, said the company had not yet decided whether to appeal the new ruling. However, he questions the reasoning behind the appeals court’s decision to allow the case to be tried in New Jersey, because the alleged injury occurred overseas, in Spain. “I find it difficult to believe that any New Jersey court would countenance claims remaining in New Jersey that have nothing to do with New Jersey, with plaintiffs who have never even set foot in New Jersey.” Mitchell S. Cohen, an attorney for the Spanish workers, said the judge who initially dismissed the case should have given the case further consideration because New Jersey is the only court where the case can be tried. “Spanish law will not allow, under the facts of these cases, to file a claim in Spain.” Spanish law won’t allow the case to be tried in Spain because the injuries alleged by the workers occurred on the Navy warships, which are sovereign United States territory. The appellate decision also says that the lower court judge should have given further consideration to the reasons behind the Spanish workers’ choosing to file in New Jersey. “We…conclude that the determination to dismiss plaintiffs’ actions in favor of a foreign jurisdiction was a clearly mistaken exercise of the court’s discretion.” In addition, the panel wrote that Owens-Illinois should not be overburdened by the case because “key corporate evidence and witnesses relating to the development, testing, marketing and sale of [asbestos-containing products] to the U.S. government or military are more likely available in this country.” (Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News)