Manning Gross + Massenburg LLP

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MG+M Boston Attorneys Eric Skelly and Christos Koutrobis successfully obtained dismissals for two clients in James T. Casey, Jr. v. Apax Partners et al., 1:18-cv-11211-DJC, a case that was pending at the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts. On behalf of MG+M’s foreign client, a motion to dismiss for improper service and lack of personal jurisdiction was granted by Judge Casper. MG+M navigated a voluntary dismissal for its other client through the discovery…
In December 2017, the EPA approved revisions to the Louisiana State Implementation Plan (“SIP”) addressing regional haze. Neither environmental groups—Sierra Club and National Parks Conservation Association—nor affected utility companies—Entergy and Cleco—are satisfied with the EPA’s rule, and they are now petitioning the Fifth Circuit as intervenors on behalf of the EPA. Both sides filed briefs on October 30, 2018. By way of background, Congress added regional haze provisions to the Clean Air Act (“CAA”) in…
In September 2018, Governor Jerry Brown signed a series of bills aimed at drastically reshaping California’s approach to claims of discrimination and harassment amidst the “#MeToo” Movement. Among the legislation is Senate Bill 1300 which clarifies and expands employee rights under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (“FEHA”). SB 1300, which was met with both opposition and support, became effective January 1, 2019. In addition to Senate Bill 1300, Gov. Brown also signed into…
In a recent decision, the Rhode Island Superior Court ruled that claims brought against a dissolved entity’s insurers are barred pursuant to R.I. General Laws § 27-7-2.  This statute bars direct actions against insurers of alleged tortfeasors absent very limited exceptions. In Shirley D’Amico, et al. v. A.O. Smith Corp., et al. (C.A. PC12-0403), the Rhode Island Superior Court examined whether one of those exceptions to R.I. General Laws § 27-7-2, which allows direct actions…
Florida courts have historically relied on the standards set forth in Frye v. United States, 293 F. 1013 (D.C. Cir. 1923) (“Frye”) to determine the admissibility of expert opinions and testimony.  Though the Florida Supreme Court adopted Frye in the mid-1980s, Florida courts had applied this standard long before then. See Bundy v. State, 471 So. 2d 9 (Fla. 1985); Bundy v. State, 455 So. 2d 330 (Fla. 1984). However, in April 2013, the Florida…
Defendants DCo, LLC (formerly known as Dana Companies) and Ford Motor Company (collectively “Defendants”) recently obtained a defense verdict in an asbestos personal injury matter following a nine day trial that took place in the Western District of Washington. Plaintiffs alleged the decedent, Patrick Jack, developed mesothelioma as a result of exposure to asbestos from products manufactured or supplied by the Defendants. Plaintiff passed away at the age of 81. Specifically, Plaintiffs claim that Mr.…
In Summerlin v. Philip Morris USA, et al., 1581-cv-5255, following a five-week trial before Judge Heidi Brieger, the jury returned a verdict in favor of the plaintiff amounting to $43,100,000. Three defendants remained through verdict; however, the jury found that only R.J. Reynolds was liable. The jury found that defendants, Hampden Automotive and Philip Morris USA, breached the implied warranty of merchantability for selling a defectively designed product, but neither were found to be a…
On June 29, 2018, a New Jersey state appeals court ruled that a superior court improperly allowed a jury to consider evidence, not represented at trial, in allocating damages among nine defendants in an asbestos case. The state appeals court ordered a new trial in Rowe v. Bell & Gossett Company to address the issue of re-apportioning the $1,500,000.00 jury verdict. Throughout Ronald Rowe’s thirty-plus year career working as an automobile mechanic, and repairing and servicing…
Talk is cheap…until lawyers get involved. “Lawyers: are persons who write a 10,000 word document and call it a brief.” – Franz Kafka Mouthpiece: n. old-fashion slang for one’s lawyer. Burton’s Legal Thesaurus, 4E. (2007). Retrieved August 8, 2018, from https://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/mouthpiece There are thousands of sated comedians in the world who make a living off the caricature of loquacious litigators. Indeed, it is probably a fair statement that attorneys like to talk. Attend any bar event…
Often times we, as attorneys, need subtle reminders of the power of burden shifting during discovery. We were provided that reminder in a recent, though unpublished, take-home asbestos appellate court opinion which upheld a trial court’s granting of a motion for summary judgment. (Foglia v. Moore Dry Dock Co., No. A142125, 2018 WL 1193683 (Cal. Ct. App. Mar. 8, 2018) The appellate court in Foglia agreed with the trial court decision that the plaintiffs could…