ST. LOUIS - Associate judge Andrew Carruthers told asbestos lawyers on Sept. 20 that he will preside over Madison County’s asbestos docket beginning on Oct. 1.
He told lawyers at the HarrisMartin Midwest Asbestos Litigation Conference at the Four Seasons Hotel in St. Louis that some of them knew he was filling in this year for asbestos judge Stephen Stobbs, who now serves as chief judge.
Stobbs has presided as chief judge and asbestos judge since last November, and Carruthers said Stobbs knew it would be difficult to continue doing both.
“At first I was like a student teacher taking notes in the back row,” Carruthers said.
“It’s been fun so far,” he added.
Carruthers said he’s seen negotiation, mediation, and settlement conferences.
He said Stobbs wants more formal negotiation with judges leading it for each other.
Someone attending the conference asked about Zoom, and Carruthers said it’s helpful where appropriate.
“People are more likely to get things done if they’re in person,” he said.
Carruthers added that he wouldn’t use it any more than he does now.
Someone else asked about the standing management order.
He responded that he won’t consider changing it until he knows it better.
Another person in attendance asked if they could reach him during depositions, and he said, “Judge Stobbs has warned me about that.”
“If you need me I’ll take a break and figure it out if I can,” he said.
He said he grew up in Godfrey two doors from Stobbs.
He said he followed Stobbs to the legal profession, the firm of his father John Dale Stobbs, the judiciary, and now the asbestos docket.
Stobbs presided over asbestos for ten years before he was selected to serve as chief judge.
Harris Martin Publishing presented the conference.