SAN FRANCISCO – A manufacturer may not be held strictly liable or negligent for harm caused by another manufacturer’s asbestos-containing product except where the defendant bears some direct responsibility for the resulting harm, the California Supreme Court held today in rejecting “an unprecedented expansion of strict products liability” (Barbara J. O’Neil, et al. v. Crane [...]

LOS ANGELES – A California jury on Aug. 9 ordered Philip Morris USA Inc. to pay $ 12.8 million to the 19-year-old son of a Marlboro smoker whose estate had earlier won $ 83 million from the company for his death from lung cancer, a source told Mealey Publications (Judy Boeken, et al v. Philip [...]

SAN FRANCISCO – Taxpayers may bring class action claims against a local government under Government Code 910, a unanimous California Supreme Court ruled July 25, reversing a Court of Appeal judgment (Estuardo Ardon v. City of Los Angeles, No. S174507, Calif. Sup.; 2011 Cal. LEXIS 7681). LexisNexis® Mealey’s™ Daily Legal News

OAKLAND, Calif. – A federal judge in California on May 25 found that a class action plaintiff failed to plead her unfair trade practices and consumer remedies law claims against several skilled nursing facility entities with enough specificity. The judge allowed the plaintiff to replead claims against a potential nursing home parent company, according to [...]