190 Companies Sued in Different Asbestos Cases

CHARLESTON – Fifteen people are suing 190 defendant corporations in eight different asbestos-related cases.

George E. Bickerstaff and Carolyn Bickerstaff, Melva J. Devore, executrix of the Estate of Melvin E. Carpenter, Barbara Ford, executrix of the Estate of James Fife, David T. Gorrell Jr. and Mary J. Gorrell, Paul R. Groves and Mary Ellen Groves, Eulonda Haley, David K. Harris and Linda Harris, George W. Kokos and Maryann Kokos, and Michael Tennant and Cheryl Tennant have filed eight individual lawsuits on January 4 in Kanawha Circuit Court.

The plaintiffs argue that the companies are responsible for asbestosis and lung cancer that Bickerstaff, Carpenter, Fife, David Gorrell, Paul Groves, Haley and David Harris developed, and the asbestosis that George Kokos and Michael Tennant are suffering from.

The complaints state the companies knew or should have known that asbestos can cause fatal diseases including cancer, they failed to warn the plaintiffs of the hazards of asbestos exposure.

The lawsuits say that the companies failed to provide the plaintiffs with enough safety apparel that a person dealing with asbestos must use. The plaintiffs are asking for a jury trail.

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