Seth A. Dymond Prevails in an Appeal Affirming a $7 Million Mesothelioma Verdict

October 29, 2020 |

News

NEW YORK CITY (October 29, 2020) – Seth A. Dymond, partner and head of the Appellate
and Motion Department at Belluck & Fox, LLP successfully defended an appeal taken from a
more than $7 million asbestos verdict against defendant Jenkins Bros. The defendant argued on
appeal that there was not enough evidence to establish that its asbestos-containing valves
caused the plaintiff James G. Stock to develop terminal mesothelioma that resulted in his
subsequent death.

James G. Stock, who had been working in a second career as a police officer, was diagnosed
with incurable mesothelioma in 2017, a signature disease of asbestos exposure. Between 1979
and 1986, Stock worked in the maintenance department at the NY Wire Mills plant in
Tonawanda, New York, where he was regularly exposed to asbestos in countless valves
manufactured by Jenkins Bros. Stock and his wife Lynn commenced this lawsuit seeking
damages for the injuries that he sustained as a result of his exposure to the asbestos. After
Belluck & Fox, LLP attorneys secured a more than $7 million jury verdict for the Stocks in
Buffalo in September of 2018, Jenkins Bros. asked the trial court to overturn the jury verdict on
multiple grounds, and to reduce the amount of damages. After its motion was denied in its
entirety, Jenkins Bros. appealed, arguing that the plaintiff did not establish that Mr. Stock’s
exposure to asbestos from Jenkins Bros. valves was a cause of his disease.

In unanimously rejecting Jenkins Bros.’ argument, the New York Appellate Division, Fourth
Judicial Department, concluded that “[c]ontrary to defendant’s contention, the expert’s opinion,
considered along with the rest of her testimony, was sufficient to establish specific causation.
The Appellate Division then rejected defendant’s contention that the decision of New York’s
highest court in Matter of New York City Asbestos Litig. [Juni] (32 NY3d 1116 [2018]) compelled
a different result under the facts of this case, or warranted a new trial.

Seth Dymond is a partner and the head of the Appellate and Motion Department at Belluck &
Fox, LLP. He has a consistent history of victories at the appellate courts, and to date has never
had a liability verdict overturned at the appellate level. He frequently briefs and argues
numerous cutting-edge legal issues in Asbestos Litigation across New York State and other
jurisdictions. Prior to joining Belluck & Fox, LLP, Dymond was a Senior Court Attorney at the
New York State Appellate Division, Second Judicial Department, where he worked on hundreds
of appeals. Seth received his J.D., magna cum laude, from New York Law School, and his
Bachelor of Music from James Madison University.