Federal Court Upholds Foreign Arbitrator's $500,000 Fees Award in Asbestos Case

CLEVELAND - A federal judge has upheld an award of attorneys' fees entered by a foreign arbitrator who was asked to determine whether the insurers of a defunct steamship company should be held liable for asbestos-related injuries alleged by several of the company's former employees. Aasma, et al., v. American Steamship Owners Mutual Protection and Indemnity, et al., No. 1:90cv2280 (N.D. Ohio).

In a decision issued earlier this year in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Judge David A. Katz entered judgment on the $500,000 fee award after determining it was in line with a provision permitting …