A jury has handed up a verdict of $15 million against R.T. Vanderbilt Holding Company Inc. on behalf of the family of a man who died of mesothelioma following asbestos exposure.
Jurors also determined that the family of Nicholas Barone of Milford, Conn., who worked at a General Electric plastics facility in Pittsford, Mass., in the 1960s, is entitled to punitive damages. Therefore, the ultimate verdict amount could be higher.
Details of Barone’s Asbestos Exposure
While Barone was working as a chemical engineer at the GE plant, the company purchased hundreds of bags of talc from International Talc and dumped them into hoppers as part of the plastics-making process. The talc came from a pit in upstate New York, known as the Arnold Pit, known to have been contaminated with asbestos.
R.T. Vanderbilt purchased International Talc in 1974 and continued the product line, making it responsible under Connecticut law for Barone’s death in 2023 at age 81. Before he died, Barone gave deposition testimony, which the jury heard on May 8-9.
Barone testified he was in the vicinity when plant operators added talc to a mixture, sometimes on the platform with them and sometimes just beside the machine.
He described the plant as a dusty work environment and said he never wore any breathing protection, nor did the company offer any. Barone also testified he would clean the rooftop collection areas, which could be very dusty if there was a clog.
“A Measure of Justice” for the Family
Barone attended the United States Military Academy at West Point and served in the U.S. Army. He earned a chemical engineering degree from Worcester Polytech and was a father of three.
“We are enormously grateful to the jurors who heard this case and who, through their verdict, are providing some measure of justice for Nick’s family,” said attorney Benjamin Braly of Dean Omar Branham Shirley in a press release.
Braly and the firm’s Sam Iola and Brian Kenny of Early Lucarelli & Sweeny represented Mr. Barone’s widow, Kathryn, at trial.
Punitive damages in the case will be determined at a later date.
