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Article: Caseload shows few signs of waning.(Downstate Madison County)
- Article from:
- Crain's Chicago Business
- Article date:
- September 28, 2009
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2009 Crain Communications, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: Steven R. Strahler
The mother of all mass torts shows no signs of quitting.
Asbestos-related filings in plaintiff-friendly Downstate Madison County, near St. Louis, are rising again. After dropping to 266 in 2006 from more than 900 in 2003, the number rebounded to 639 last year and, with 496 cases filed as of Aug. 31, has been climbing again this year.
"That tail isn't necessarily a tail. It just keeps on going, says Lisa Rickard, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's tort-oriented Institute for Legal Reform.
Lawyers say asbestos litigation could stretch to the middle of this century, more than doubling the 700,000-plus ...