A McLean County jury recently entered a verdict in favor of an insulation distributor, seller and installer in a pipefitter’s asbestos lawsuit.
On June 19, the jury found in favor defendant Sprinkmann Sons Corporation of Illinois in Circuit Judge Paul Lawrence’s court.
Plaintiff Jana Frank, as special administrator of the estate of Charles Goodwin, filed the complaint in February 2008.
She alleged her father Charles Goodwin developed lung cancer as a result of asbestos exposure, which eventually caused his death in February 2007.
Goodwin worked as a plumber-pipefitter in the construction industry at various locations throughout Illinois from 1962 until 2006.
His job sites included power plants in the Illinois cities of Morris, Baldwin, Clinton and Cordova, as well as non-power plant sites, including an army ammunition plan in Burlington, Iowa.
Through his work as a pipefitter, Goodwin was allegedly exposed to and inhaled airborne asbestos dust, causing him to develop lung cancer in June 2006.
The plaintiffs blamed Sprinkmann for manufacturing and selling asbestos-containing insulation, including Unibestos pipe insulation, which was used at Goodwin’s various work locations.
Goodwin’s next of kin includes his wife Donna Goodwin, sons Tim and Robert Goodwin, daughter Heidi Ensign and daughter Jana Frank.
Sprinkmann Sons was represented by Cathy Molchin of Cathy Molchin, P.C. in Mapleton, Ill. and Douglas Sinars of Matushek, Nilles & Sinars in Chicago and Edwardsville.
Frank was represented by Wylder Corwin Kelly of Bloomington.
The asbestos firm has in the past has alleged conspiracy among manufacturers and distributors of materials containing asbestos. The Fourth District Appellate Court has rejected the theory, wiping out multi-million dollar verdicts in 2012 and 2013. The court also upheld a McLean County judge's order granting summary judgment to asbestos defendants last year.