Southeast Asbestos Litigation Conference

Conference Agenda

Day 1, Wednesday, April 06, 2011

7:30 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.
Continental Breakfast & Registration

8:30 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.
Welcome By Co-Chairs

Christian Hartley, Maune, Raichle, Hartley, French & Mudd, LLC, Mount Pleasant, SC
Albert H. Parnell, Hawkins Parnell Thackston & Young LLP, Atlanta


8:30 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.
The 2011 Outlook: The Latest Claims and Trends in the Southeast

- Where Are We Going in 2011?
- Filing Trends by Disease and Jurisdictions
- What This Will Mean For You: National and Regional Prospects


Bradley Drew, Navigant Consulting, Inc., Princeton, NJ


9:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.
Filing Cases in South Carolina
  • The Newly Implemented Master Discovery
  • Scheduling Orders
  • South Carolina Asbestos Claims Act
    V. Brian Bevon, Motley Rice, Mt. Pleasant, SC

9:30 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.
Shipyard, U.S. Navy and Maritime Cases

- Maritime Law as a Choice of Law
- Removal Issues
- The Faddish Decision and its Impact
- The U.S. Navy's Control Over Equipment and Material Specifications


Robert R. Hatten, Patten, Wornom, Hatten & Diamonstein, Newport News, VA
John M. Fitzpatrick, Wheeler Trigg O'Donnell, Denver
Erik D. Nadolink, Wheeler Trigg O'Donnell, Denver


10:30 a.m. - 10:45 a.m.
Refreshment Break

10:45 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.
Asbestos Litigation in South Carolina: The View From the Bench

Judge D. Garrison Hill, South Carolina Circuit Court, Circuit 13, Greenville, SC


11:15 a.m. - 12:15 a.m.
The Federal MDL

John E. Herrick, Motley Rice, Mt. Pleasant, SC
David Craig Landin, Hunton & Williams, Richmond, VA


12:15 p.m. - 1:15 p.m.
Lunch

1:15 p.m. - 2:15 p.m.
Perspectives on Jury Selection in the Southeast

- Subtle or Patent Differences County by County and State by State
- Actual or Perceived Differences in Gender, Race and Age


Stuart L. Cohen, Bennett Aiello Cohen & Fried LLP, Miami
Cindy K. Andrews Ph.D., DecisionQuest, Chicago
Carl E. Pierce Jr., Pierce, Herns, Sloan & McLeod, LLC, Charleston, SC


2:15 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Refreshment Break

2:30 p.m. - 3:15 p.m.
The Impact of Industrial Hygiene Experts

- The Four Pillars of an Industrial Hygienist's Expert Testimony -- Quantification of Exposure, Reconstruction and Testing of the Product, Industry and Trade Specific Inquiry and Development of Alternative Exposures
- Proximity, Duration and Intensity
- Fiber Type and Size, Plus the Make-Up of Other Materials in the Production
- Using the IH to Discredit the Adverse Party's IH
- Critiquing the Study and Suggesting Alternative Methods
- Establishing "Orders of Magnitude"
- Chrysotile v. Amphibole


Lawrence G. Cetrulo, Cetrulo & Capone, Boston
Chris Panatier, Simon, Eddins & Greenstone, LLP, Dallas


3:15 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
The Friction Product Case

- Update on Status of Industry-Sponsored "Science"
- Recent Trial Results in FL and SC - What Do They Tell Us About Friction Product Litigation?
- Litigation Regarding Chrysler and General Motors Products Post-Bankruptcy


Jonathan Ruckdeschel, The Ruckdeschel Law Firm, LLC, Ellicott City, MD
Carl R. Schwertz, Miles & Stockbridge, P.C., McLean, VA


4:30 p.m. - 5:15 p.m.
The Pathologist and Causation

- The Pathologic Diagnosis of Asbestos-Related Diseases
- The Significance of Fiber Burden Analyses in the Determination of Causation
- Trial Issues Involving the Testimony of a Pathologist


Barrett Naman, DeLuca & Nemeroff, LLP, Spring, TX
Michael J. Block, Wilbraham, Lawler & Buba, Philadelphia


5:15 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
Networking Cocktail Reception