U.S. Supreme Court to Hear Asbestos 'Fear of Cancer' Case

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to take on the question of whether a West Virginia Circuit Court erred when it awarded "fear of cancer" damages to railroad workers who were exposed to asbestos, but who showed no evidence of any physical manifestation of the disease. Norfolk & Western Railway Co. v. Freeman Ayers, et al., No. 01-963 (U.S. Sup.)

In an order issued April 1, the nation's highest court said it would hear the case, granting a petition for writ of certiorari filed by Norfolk & Western Railway Co.

Norfolk & Western was on the losing …