Pennsylvania State Court Sustains Objections to Personal Jurisdiction in 2 Benzene Cases

PHILADELPHIA –– A Pennsylvania state court has sustained several preliminary objections filed in two benzene lawsuits, dismissing claims against a number of defendants.

In separate one-page orders issued last month, the Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas for Philadelphia County ordered that the plaintiffs’ claims be dismissed for failure to establish personal jurisdiction.

The orders were entered in benzene cases brought by Mark and Sandra Smith and William Hill.

The defendants had reasserted their preliminary objections to the benzene claims in light of the U.S. Supreme Court’s June decision in Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. v. Superior Court of California, San Francisco County …