Porter Scott Secures Dismissal in Wrongful Death Mesothelioma Action

Porter Scott obtained a dismissal for the City of Roseville in a high-stakes wrongful death mesothelioma action. Plaintiffs sued multiple defendants and public entities, alleging the decedent—their husband and father—developed mesothelioma and died after asbestos exposures on numerous public-entity projects, including work commissioned by the City of Roseville. After multiple rounds of demurrers, our team successfully argued that the Plaintiffs’ complaint failed to satisfy the heightened specificity requirements for claims against public entities. While other public-entity defendants remain in the litigation, the City of Roseville has been dismissed.

This matter was widely regarded by the parties and Plaintiffs’ counsel as a landmark case: a potential test of whether public entities could be newly implicated as defendants in mesothelioma suits. A plaintiff victory here could have opened the door to including public entities in multi‑million‑dollar asbestos claims. Securing dismissal at the pleading stage therefore represents a significant win for public‑entity defendants.

Congratulations to Porter Scott’s public entity litigation team, led by Shareholder Will Camy and Associate Washington Gwarada, on this significant victory for public entity Defendants.