Woman sues seven companies over husband's asbestos exposure

A woman has filed an asbestos suit against seven defendant corporations on behalf of her recently deceased husband, claiming the asbestos-related disease with which her husband was diagnosed was wrongfully caused.

Amanda Elizabeth Collier says her husband, Forrest Collier, already filed a lawsuit or settled claims for his non-malignant disease with at least one of the defending companies. Now she is seeking additional compensation because he died from a different malignant asbestos-related injury.

Amanda Elizabeth Collier claims the defendants failed to test the asbestos-containing products around which Forrest Collier worked as a lab technician, according to a lawsuit filed Aug. 5 in Jefferson County District Court.

She says the defendant companies were negligent by failing to timely warn Forrest Collier about the dangers of asbestos.

She states the companies also negligently failed to remove their asbestos products from the market after they became aware of the products' dangers, according to the lawsuit.

Named as defendants in the suit are Babcock Borsig Power, CBS Corporation, Crown Cork, Guard-Line, Ingersoll-Rand Company , Lockheed Martin Corporation andUniroyal.

Because of his illness, Forrest Collier has suffered great physical pain and mental anguish, has incurred medical costs, suffered from a physical impairment, suffered from lost wages and suffered from disfigurement, according to the complaint.

Amanda Elizabeth Collier has incurred funeral costs because of her husband's death.

In the lawsuit, Amanda Elizabeth Collier is seeking unspecified actual and exemplary damages, plus costs, pre- and post-judgment interest and other relief the Court deems appropriate.

She is represented by Bryan O. Blevins Jr. and Aaryn K. Giblin of Provost Umphrey Law Firm in Beaumont.
The case has been assigned to Judge Gary Sanderson, 60th District Court.

Jefferson County District Court case number: B184-615.