Pa. Appellate Court Reverses Stance in 'Two-Disease' Dispute

PHILADELPHIA -- A Pennsylvania appellate court has reversed its position on the application of the state's "two-disease" rule in two asbestos lawsuits, now concluding that the plaintiffs are precluded from bringing claims premised on cancer diagnoses since they have previously recovered damages for fear-of-cancer claims. Abrams v. Pneumo Abex Corp., No. 1182 EDA 2005; Shaw v. A.W. Chesterton, et al., No. 1185 EDA 2005 (Pa. Super. Ct.).

In the Dec. 17 opinion, the Pennsylvania Superior Court upheld, by a 5-4 vote, a trial court's award of summary judgment to John Crane, a defendant who was not named in the first …