Court Affirms Award to Wife of Former Sears Employee Who Died from Mesothelioma

RALEIGH, N.C. - The North Carolina Court of Appeals has upheld a decision to award benefits to the wife of a former Sears Roebuck employee, who claimed he developed mesothelioma as a result of exposure to asbestos at one of the company's mail order service plants. Lackey v. Sears Roebuck & Company, et al., No. COA03-47 (N.C. Ct. App.).

The Dec. 16 decision affirms an award issued by the state's Industrial Commission, which determined that claimant Paul Lackey was exposed to asbestos while working for Sears.

Lackey was diagnosed with mesothelioma in April 1999 and offered evidence indicating that two …