Court Opines Plaintiff Entitled to Bankruptcy Notice through Publication

OLYMPIA, Wash. -- A state supreme court has reinstated a trial court's summary judgment order that found a defendant had been discharged from an asbestos lawsuit because of earlier bankruptcy proceedings. Herring, et al. v. Texaco, et al., No. 78774-3 (Wash. Sup. Ct.).

In the Aug. 9 opinion, the Washington Supreme Court reversed an intermediate appellate court's decision to throw out the summary judgment order, ultimately finding that since the plaintiff was unknown to the defendant, the plaintiff was only entitled to notice of the bankruptcy through publication.

As a member of the Asbestos Workers Union Local 7, Roger Herring …