Case Title: Cathleen A. and Emmett O. Camplin v. ACandS, Inc.

Citation: 

Docket Number: 49S02-0202-CV-128

State: indiana

Court: Indiana Supreme Court

Date: 2002-05-17T00:00:00Z

Document:
ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLANTS             ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEES 
 LINDA GEORGE                         SEE APPENDIX A W. RUSSELL SIPES                     Laudig George Rutherford & Sipes          Indianapolis, Indiana                            IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIANA  CATHLEEN A. and EMMETT O. CAMPLIN, ) ) Appellants (Plaintiffs Below ), ) Cause No. 49S02-0202-CV-128 ) in the Supreme Court v. ) ) ACandS, INC., et al., ) Cause No. 49A02-0106-CV-429 ) in the Court of Appeals Appellees (Defendants Below ). ) ) 
 ______________________________________________________________________________  APPEAL FROM THE MARION SUPERIOR COURT The Honorable Kenneth H. Johnson, Judge Cause No. 49D02-9501-MI-0001-375     May 17, 2002    SHEPARD, Chief Justice.        Cathleen Camplin allegedly contracted a disease as a result of contact with asbestos fibers brought home on the person and clothing of her husband Emmett, a union insulator. The trial court dismissed the Camplins' suit on the basis that Mrs. Camplin lacked standing under Indiana's Product Liability Act.  
     The Indiana Court of Appeals invited us to accept jurisdiction over the Camplins' appeal because it involves the same issue as another case in which we had granted transfer. See Stegemoller v. ACandS, Inc., 749 N.E.2d 1216, 1220 (Ind. Ct. App. 2001), transfer granted, 761 N.E.2d 423 (Ind. 2001). We accepted jurisdiction, and now hold that Mrs. Camplin has standing as a bystander under the Act. See footnote   
   Analysis         The Act governs actions by users or consumers against manufacturers or sellers for physical harm caused by products. Ind. Code Ann. § 34-20-1-1 (West 1999). For purposes of the Act, "consumer" includes "any bystander injured by the product who would reasonably be expected to be in the vicinity of the product during its reasonably expected use." Id. § 34-6-2-29. Who qualifies under this statutory definition is a legal question, to be decided by the court. Estate of Shebel v. Yaskawa Elec. Am., Inc., 713 N.E.2d 275, 279 (Ind. 1999).  
     We hold today in Stegemoller v. ACandS, Inc., No. 49S02-0111-CV-593, slip op. (Ind. May 17, 2002), that a plaintiff who allegedly contracted a disease as a result of contact with asbestos fibers brought home on the person and clothing of her husband has standing as a bystander under the Act. Our reasoning in that case applies here, and we reach the same result: taking into account the nature of asbestos products, Mrs. Camplin has a cognizable claim as a bystander under the Act.  
       Conclusion        We reverse the dismissal of this action and direct that it be reinstated.  
 Dickson, Sullivan, Boehm, and Rucker, JJ., concur.     APPENDIX A: ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEES    For ACandS, Inc.; North American Refractories Co. SONIA C. DAS SUE MEHRINGER LISA DILLMAN Lewis & Wagner Indianapolis, Indiana 
 For Amchem Products; C.E. Thurston; Certain Teed Corp.; Flexitallic; T&N, PLC; Union Carbide  MICHAEL BERGIN  DANIEL LONG Locke Reynolds LLP Indianapolis, Indiana 
 For Oakfabco, Inc.  JOHN L. LISHER  Osborne Hiner & Lisher Indianapolis, Indiana 
 For Rapid American; Flintkote Co.  DOUGLAS B. KING  JEFFREY McKEAN ROGER ORLUP Wooden & McLaughlin, LLP Indianapolis, Indiana 
 For Combustion Engineering; Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical  CHRISTOPHER LEE  Kahn Dees Donovan & Kahn Evansville, Indiana 
 For Foster Wheeler LLC; A.P. Green; Harbison-Walker Refractories Co.  JASON L. KENNEDY  Segal McCambridge Singer & Mahoney Chicago, Illinois 
 For Fargo Insulation  JAMES E. ROCAP  JEFFREY B. FETCH Rocap Witchger LLP Indianapolis, Indiana                                      For D.B. Riley, Inc.  STACY ALEXANDER  REGINALD BISHOP  Roberts & Bishop Indianapolis, Indiana  For BMW Constructors, Inc. EDWARD HARNEY  Hume Smith Geddes Green & Simmons, LLP Indianapolis, Indiana  For General Electric Co.  KEVIN KNIGHT Ice Miller Indianapolis, Indiana  For General Refractories; Grefco  RANDALL NYE SCOTT LOITZ Beckman, Kelly & Smith Hammond, Indiana  For Central Supply Co.  MARY K. REEDER CHARLES C. DOUGLAS Riley Bennett & Egloff, LLP Indianapolis, Indiana 
 
  
 Footnote:  Defendants Kaiser Aluminum and Chemical Corp. and North American Refractories Co. have filed for bankruptcy, and this decision is thus subject to applicable rules of bankruptcy law as to them.