Virginia Federal Judge Denies Remand in Nearly 300 Asbestos Lawsuits

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- A federal judge has denied remand motions in an estimated 275 asbestos cases, finding that affidavits presented in support of removal sufficiently supported the defendants' argument that they acted under the scope of the federal government. Mitchell, et al. v. AC&S, et al., No. 04-2713 (E.D. Va.).

On Feb. 15, Judge Jerome B. Friedman of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia denied the plaintiffs' motions to remand the lawsuits, and subsequently transferred the claims to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, where the Asbestos Products Liability Litigation MDL …