Court: Widow's Wrongful Death Cause Barred by Untimely Underlying Claim

JACKSON, Miss. - A state appeals court has upheld an award of summary judgment to defendants in a silica case, determining that a widow's wrongful death claim cannot be considered timely when the underlying tort claim is also barred by the statute of limitations. May v. Pulmosan Safety Equipment Corp., et al., No. 2005-CA-01750 (Miss. Ct. App.).

The Mississippi Court of Appeals reached the decision Feb. 6, extinguishing the wrongful death claims of Helen May, who was substituted as a plaintiff in a lawsuit her husband filed nearly 31 years after he was diagnosed with silicosis.

Jefferson Davis May alleged …