Berry v. American Standard, Inc.

              1
NOTICE
Decision filed 05/19/08. The text of
this dec ision may be changed or
corrected prior to the filing of a
Petition for Rehea ring or the
disposition of the same.
NO. 5-06-0621
IN THE
APPELLATE COURT OF ILLINOIS
FIFTH DISTRICT
___________________________________________________________________________
LINNIE KATHRYN BERRY, on Her ) Appeal from the
Own Behalf and as Personal Representative ) Circuit Court of
of the Estate of Howard L. Berry, Deceased, ) Crawford County.
)
Plaintiff-Appellant, ))
v. ) No. 04-L-1
)
AMERICAN STANDARD, INC., )
AMERICAN WATER WORKS SERVICE )
COMPANY, INC., ARKLA INDUSTRIES, )
INC., GARLOCK SEALING )
TECHNOLOGIES, LLC, G.W. )
BERKHEIMER COMPANY, INC., )
INDUSTRIAL CONTRACTORS, INC., JOHN )
CRANE, INC., LENNOX INDUSTRIES, )
INC., MARATHON OIL COMPANY, )
SEALING EQUIPMENT PRODUCTS )
COMPANY, UNION CARBIDE )
CORPORATION, and THE WHIRLPOOL )
CORPORATION, ) Honorable Kimbara G. Harrell and
) Honorable Stephen G. Sawyer,
Defendants-Appellees. ) Judges, presiding.
__________________________________________________________________________
JUSTICE WELCH delivered the opinion of the court:
On January 2, 2004, Howard and Linnie Kathryn Berry filed in the circuit court of
Crawford County a complaint against 47 defendants, seeking damages resulting from
Howard Berry's exposure to asbestos on various job sites. Howard Berry had been diagnosed
with terminal mesothelioma on September 23, 2003, with a life expectancy of between 8 and
18 months.
On January 21, 2004, the plaintiffs' counsel served upon the defendants a notice that
Howard's evidence deposition would be taken on February 25, 2004. The defendants