N.Y. Court Finds $25 Million Award in Asbestos Case ‘Excessive’; Proposes Reduced Verdict of $9 Million

NEW YORK –– A New York court has found that a jury’s award of $25 million in an asbestos case against a brake grinder manufacturer was excessive, but said that a new trial on damages would not be necessary if the plaintiff would agree to a reduced award of $9 million total.

In the April 25 order, the New York Supreme Court for New York County rejected all of Hennessy Industries Inc.’s other grounds for judgment notwithstanding the verdict, including that the plaintiff had failed to establish general and specific causation.

Plaintiff Walter Miller contended in his complaint …