CBA Record November-December 2023

YOUNG LAWYERS SECTION Interstate Warehousing, Inc., 2017 IL 121281, clarified that merely having an Illinois warehouse does not consti tute being “at home,” and corporations do not consent to personal jurisdiction by registering to do business under the Illinois Business Corporation Act of 1983, 805 ILCS 5/1.01 et seq.

Strategies Evaluate the following strategies to guide an asbestos case: • Statute of Limitations: assuming Illinois law applies to the dispute, claimants generally have two years to bring suit after diagnosis or death. • Lack of Product Identification: in 2022, the average complaint had 70 defendants, yet 60% were eventually dismissed. Seek a voluntary dismissal if no testimony is offered regarding the claimant’s work with or around your client’s products or premises. • True Exposures: once a witness identi fies products and premises a claimant had contact with, defendants must pinpoint the true sources of asbes tos exposure. When warranted, it is imperative to develop evidence and trial themes that distinguish between all established instances of genuine asbestos exposure and those where exposure to a defendant’s product or premises is merely alleged. • Alternative Medical Causation: if your client manufactured or sold chryso tile asbestos products, retain experts to address the debate on the hazards of chrysotile asbestos compared to expo sure from amphibole asbestos products. • State-of-the-Art Defense: many states

have codified a statutory defense that a defendant is not liable for failing to warn about a danger that was not known or reasonably knowable at the time the product was designed. Available Resources Asbestos litigation demands proficiency in motion practice and depositions. Join the Chicago Bar Association’s YLS Tort Committee to network with asbestos law yers and to access complimentary CLEs on motion practice and depositions that are both in-person and on-demand. Asbestos cases also have unique proce dural rules in contrast to general civil liti gation. Review the case management order for your specific jurisdiction to understand discovery and motion deadlines and ana lyze the judge’s standing orders for guid ance on filing and Zoom rules. Finally, explore the regulations set forth by OSHA, the EPA, and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Regis try to enhance your understanding of the evolving history and science of asbestos litigation.

• Mallory v. Norfolk Southern Railway Co., 143 S. Ct. 2028 (2023), held that a Pennsylvania law requiring out-of state corporations to consent to juris diction as a requirement to do business is consistent with the Due Process Clause. Be mindful of potential future legislation that amends the Illinois Business Corporation Act of 1983 by mandating consent to personal juris diction to do business. • Thacker v. UNR Industries, Inc., 151 Ill. 2d 343 (1992), adopted the height ened Lohrmann v. Pittsburgh Corning Corp., 782 F.2d 1156 (4th Cir. 1986), “frequency, regularity and proximity” test in Illinois. Plaintiffs must demon strate that they were exposed to asbes tos from a defendant’s product (1) in a location they regularly occupied, (2) with frequent asbestos exposure, and (3) in close enough proximity to have direct contact with the product.

Andre Hunter, Jr., is a defense litigator at Gordon & Rees and serves as a Director for the CBA Young Lawyers Section.

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