Asbestos MDL Court Weighs in on ‘Bare Metal Defense’ Under Pa. Law

PHILADELPHIA –– The court overseeing the national Asbestos Products Liability Multidistrict Litigation docket has opined that, under Pennsylvania law governing negligence claims, a manufacturer does in fact owe a duty to warn of asbestos-related hazards in aftermarket component parts it did not sell or manufacture, provided the defendant knew that its product would be used in connection with the asbestos-containing component.

In a May 27 memorandum, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania did, however, reject the notion that a manufacturer could be held responsible in strict liability for aftermarket asbestos-containing component parts that it neither manufactured …