Court Affirms Verdict Against Asbestos Premises Defendant

SAN FRANCISCO - A premises defendant found negligent for exposing an employee of an independent contractor to asbestos has failed in its attempt to have the verdict reversed on grounds that the wrong legal standard had been applied to the plaintiffs' claims. Smith, et al., v. Mobil Oil Corp., No. A096323 (Calif. Ct. App., First Dist.).

The First District California Court of Appeal held Feb. 21 that the jury's affirmative negligence finding did not amount to a determination that defendant Mobil Oil Corp. had negligently retained control over the premises, a theory of recovery that had been rejected recently by …