Wash. Court in Part Grants U.S. Motion to Dismiss Asbestos Case, Calls Remaining Claims ‘Questionable’

SEATTLE –– A federal court has granted in part the United States’s motion to dismiss an asbestos action, saying that claims arising out of pre-1970 exposure were precluded by the discretionary function exception to the Federal Tort Claims Act.

In the Aug. 5 decision, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington additionally noted that its denial of similar efforts with regards to post-1970 claims was procedural, as the U.S. had filed a motion to dismiss and not a motion for summary judgment.

Calling the plaintiffs’ case “questionable,” the District Court subsequently stayed the action and directed the …