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Justices order single hearings on asbestos cases

Ronald J. Hansen / The Detroit News

The Michigan Supreme Court ordered judges around the state to handle asbestos-related lawsuits individually rather than bundle them together for collective settlement agreements, under a rule adopted Wednesday.

The rule is intended to ensure that cases involving the sickest patients stricken with asbestos-related diseases receive special attention, the administrative order said.

The court's seven justices split 4-3, however, as to whether the change was needed or will help those exposed to the cancer-causing substance.

"This administrative order will, I believe, advance the interests of the most seriously ill asbestos plaintiffs whose interests have not always been well served by the present system, where available funds for compensation have been diminished or exhausted by payments for claims made by less seriously ill claimants," wrote Justice Stephen J. Markman. Three other justices agreed.

In a dissenting opinion, Justice Marilyn Kelly called the new rule "ill-advised and indefensible." "It virtually ensures that justice will be so delayed for so many diseased plaintiffs that they will never live to see their case resolved," Kelly wrote.

Justice Elizabeth Weaver noted that the new rule also could clog dockets, especially in Wayne County.

Wayne Circuit Judge Robert Colombo Jr., the only judge in the state who now hears asbestos cases, warned that if the state barred collective settlements, the courts would need 10 additional judges just for those types of cases, Weaver wrote.

"I'm concerned it's going to strain our resources and with the immediate implementation of this order," said Mary Beth Kelly, chief judge of Wayne Circuit Court. Colombo has scheduled an emergency meeting today with lawyers that handle asbestos cases to decide how to proceed under the new rule.

He has about 100 settlement conferences scheduled next month under the old system of bundled claims. That figure will grow considerably under the new rule, Kelly said.

Asbestos is a fireproof substance that was often used in factories and home insulation decades ago. It is known to cause cancer, including mesothelioma, a slow-forming, but deadly disease of the lungs. Exposure to even small amounts of asbestos can cause cancer that shows up more than 20 years later, experts agree.

Michigan's industrial past has led to thousands of asbestos claims filed in recent years.

The court's new rule applies to settlement agreements and does not prevent bundling cases to obtain group information before a trial or settlement.

Under the previous system, asbestos cases with common circumstances, such as those involving employees suing the same company, were handled together. A case that is considered typical within that group is tried by itself and the result applies to the group as a whole.

The high court has invited public comments on the new rule, which it considered for three years. State lawmakers also are considering asbestos-related legislation.

You can reach Ronald J. Hansen at (313) 222-2019 or rhansen@detnews.com.