Appellate Panel Says Wis. Trial Court ‘Erroneously Rewrote’ Asbestos Verdict in Favor of Plaintiffs

MILWAUKEE –– A Wisconsin appellate court has reversed a trial court’s decision to “rewrite” a jury verdict in an asbestos case involving mesothelioma and lung cancer claims asserted by a smoker.

In the Nov. 19 decision, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals, District I, said that if the trial court was concerned that the jury’s decision wrongfully accounted for the plaintiff’s smoking history, it should have asked the jury to resume deliberations or ordered a new trial.

Instead, the trial court “erroneously rewrote” the jury’s decision, the appellate court ruled.

The plaintiffs contend that Steven Lemberger was exposed to asbestos …