Archive for June, 2009
Chinese Drywall Suit Scheduled for Trial September 2010
The trial date for a Chinese drywall suit in Florida is scheduled for later next year, making it potentially the first in a series of cases that will be submitted to a jury involving damages caused by the toxic drywall.
The Miami Herald reports that the lawsuit over Chinese drywall brought by Melissa and Jason Harrell against South Kendall Construction, Palm Holdings, Keys Gate Realty and Banner Supply Co. will go to trial in Miami-Dade Circuit Court in September 2010.
The Harrells’ complaint alleges that defective drywall from China contained high amounts of sulfur, which caused breathing problems and headaches, corroded the coils of their air conditioner and filled their home with a chemical smell. The suit indicates that conditions caused by the defective drywall forced them to move out of their new home, which was built only three years ago.
Thousands of homes across the United States have experienced similar problems from Chinese drywall imported into the country between 2004 and 2007. The drywall was made with fly ash residue from the chimneys of coal-fired power plants, and has been found to contain high amounts of sulfur compounds. Some estimates suggest that the drywall may have been used to build as many as 300,000 homes throughout the country.
The high levels of sulfur in the drywall have been found to cause “rotten egg” smells and the gases emitted by the drywall corrode copper wiring and appliances, such as air conditioner units. There have also been concerns that the drywall is causing health problems such as headaches, breathing difficulties, insomnia and nosebleeds.
Earlier this month, the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (MDL) ordered that all Chinese drywall lawsuits filed in federal courts throughout the country will be consolidated and centralized in the Eastern District of Louisiana for pretrial litigation. The cases will be handled in a coordinated manner to avoid duplicative discovery and inconsistent pretrial rulings. However, no case management order has been issued for the federal lawsuits and it is not anticipated that the first trial date will be scheduled before the end of next year.
While the Chinese drywall suits are proceeding through the court system, lawmakers are seeking several avenues for home owner relief. House and Senate Democrats are currently investigating whether Chinese drywall problems will qualify home owners for special tax deductions under casualty loss tax code laws, and Senators Bill Nelson and Mary Landrieu have called for a Chinese drywall recall.
http://www.aboutlawsuits.com/chinese-drywall-suit-scheduled-for-trial-4623/
Chinese drywall bill diverted to committee
Associated Press
BATON ROUGE, La. — The Senate diverted legislation dealing with Chinese-made building materials, which has been implicated in health problems, to a second committee hearing.
Several federal and state agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are investigating complaints that Chinese drywall is causing health problems. There also are reports that fumes from the drywall corrode metal and cause a rotten-egg stench in homes.
Sen. Julie Quinn’s bill originally would have allowed homeowners who used the drywall in their houses to sue the makers, distributors and sellers of the material for damages and attorney fees.
With the measure up for a Senate floor vote on Tuesday, Quinn had it rewritten to delete the litigation provisions. She instead proposed that homeowners with the drywall be reimbursed by the state, with tax credits for the cost of the drywall.
Senate President Joel Chaisson, D-Destrehan, ordered the amended bill to the Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Committee, which considers all tax bills. The measure previously won approval from a Senate judiciary committee chaired by Quinn, R-Metairie.
Another round of Chinese drywall testing nearly complete
By Aaron Kessler
ORLANDO – The Florida Department of Health is nearly complete with another round of drywall testing aimed at zeroing in further on what contaminants in Chinese wallboard may be responsible for emitting volatile sulfur gases.
Lori Streit, with Illinois-based Unified Engineering, conducted the first lab tests for the state published in March. Those tests found hydrogen sulfide, carbon disulfide and carbonyl sulfide coming from several Chinese drywall samples taken from Florida homes.
http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20090604/BREAKING/906049944/1006/SPORTS0301
US Consumer Product Saftey Commission Launches a new website
CPSC Launches a new website to help homeowners keep track of the agency’s investigation into toxic drywall manufactured in China. The CPSC has only received 365 reports from residents in 18 states. If you have not filed a complaint please click here to do so.