Jury finds asbestos pipe supplier liable for Northern California pipefitter’s mesothelioma.
CALIFORNIA –– An Alameda County Jury has awarded the widow of a local pipefitter $1.1 million, finding that asbestos-cement pipe supplied by P.E. O’Hair & Co. caused Roy Dale Hopper’s mesothelioma and subsequent death.
Dale Hopper was exposed to asbestos as a pipefitter and foreman. He worked on multiple pipeline projects in the Northern California area from 1960 to 1966. Such projects included the Loch Lomond Dam and the California Aqueduct, which brought drinking water and irrigation to Central Valley and Southern California. The asbestos-cement pipe used in these projects was supplied and distributed by P.E. O’Hair & Co.
On August 14, 2018, the jury found P.E. O’Hair & Co. strictly liable for their failure to warn of the hazards of the asbestos in its pipe.
Mr. Hopper never smoked or drank. He was diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2015 and died just four months later. He leaves behind his wife of over 50 years and two adult children.
The Hoppers are represented by Rajeev Mittal of Waters Kraus Paul & Siegel in Los Angeles and Rachel Gross of Waters & Kraus, LLP in Dallas, Texas. Peter Kraus, co-founding partner of Waters & Kraus was the lead trial attorney.
About Waters Kraus Paul & Siegel
Waters Kraus Paul & Siegel is a national plaintiffs’ law firm devoted to helping families in personal injury and wrongful death cases involving asbestos, benzene, pharmaceuticals and medical devices, birth defects caused by toxic chemical exposures and semiconductor chip manufacturing. The law firm also represents plaintiffs in qui tam whistleblower matters and cases involving false claims submitted to the government. Based in Dallas, Texas, with offices in California, Louisiana, and by appointment in Illinois, Waters Kraus Paul & Siegel has represented families from all fifty states and many foreign countries, as well as foreign governments.