Mesothelioma Verdict in DeKalb County Georgia

A Georgia man spent a lifetime around motorcycles. He raced them, competed on them, repaired them, maintained them and was around them almost his entire adult life. He mostly rode Honda and Yamaha bikes. After coming down with mesothelioma, a rare form of lung cancer that is almost always caused by asbestos exposure, he filed a Georgia state court lawsuit seeking compensation for his injuries.

The defendants included Yamaha and Honda, both manufacturers of popular motorcycles. Although the companies are challenging the verdict, the jury awarded a $5 million verdict based on $400,000 in lost earning, $941,000 in medical expenses and just under $4,000,000 in pain and suffering.

The defendants asked the court to list over 25 non-parties as wrongdoers (who would be in the verdict form as causing or contributing to the Plaintiff’s contracting mesothelioma, but who would not be liable for the damages at trial) in an attempt to evade liability. Yamaha and Honda also tried to argue at trial that the Plaintiff did not prove that their motorcycles contained asbestos and that, even if they did, the Plaintiff did not prove that exposure from their products was the proximate cause of the mesothelioma diagnosis. They also tried to make the case that the Plaintiff contracting this rare form of asbestos related cancer, may have happened due to asbestos exposure unrelated to the products manufactured by them and the subject of the lawsuit.

Many motorcycle and automotive parts do, or formerly did, contain asbestos. Common parts known to have contained asbestos over the years are: clutches and clutch plates, brake pads, and (to a lesser degree) insulated parts. Plaintiff argued that these manufacturers products contained asbestos and that the defendants failed to adequately warn him that their brake parts contained asbestos.

For over 30 years, Attorney Robert J. Fleming has been handling personal injury, medical malpractice and serious dental malpractice  lawsuits for individuals and families who have been injured or died as a result of negligence or malpractice in the Atlanta, Georgia area. He is a partner in the law firm of Katz & Fleming, LLC and regularly handles cases in Atlanta as well as Alpharetta, Brookhaven, College Park, Duluth, Decatur, Doraville, Johns Creek, Jonesboro, Lawrenceville, Norcross, Peachtree City, Riverdale, Roswell, Sandy Springs, Stone Mountain, Smyrna, Peachtree City, and other cities in Georgia. He is committed to making a difference in his clients’ lives. If you or a family member have been seriously injured or died as a result of negligence and would like quality legal representation or if you would just like to consult about a potential case, contact Robert J. Fleming directly on (404) 923-7497 or contact us online.