Archive for the ‘Latest News’ Category
Chinese Drywall Has Left Tens of Thousands of Homeowners Out of Options
Chinese Drywall Has Left Tens of Thousands of Homeowners Out of Options
Broward New Times
Chinese-based companies like Knauf gladly filled the void, and it sent drywall the company eventually knew was faulty. The Chinese drywall passed through …
Chinese Drywall News Alerts
| Miami-Dade Officials Announce Drywall Assistance Poder 360 Miami-Dade County homeowners with Chinese drywall issues will receive financial help from the county on the toxic situation. County officials have reported … |
| Drywall victims get break MiamiHerald.com … are related to faulty Chinese drywall won’t have to pay any permitting fees to repair their homes, Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Alvarez said Thursday. … |
| Property appraiser trying to figure way to help tainted drywall victims Palm Beach Post More Money news » From The Post and AP By Jennifer Sorentrue More than 500 Palm Beach County homeowners whose property is tainted with Chinese drywall have … |
| Miami-Dade to help Chinese drywall victims Bizjournals.com Homeowners dealing with Chinese drywall can also try to get their property taxes reduced. Unlike the county permit program, which mostly applies to … |
| IRS: Tax deduction may go to homeowners with tainted Chinese drywall Scripps News The IRS statement comes a week after federal investigators issued a study concluding that there was a “strong association” between tainted Chinese drywall … |
| Gulfport Chinese drywall lawsuit could be among first in federal court WLOX By Trang Pham-Bui – bio | email GULFPORT, MS (WLOX) – A Gulfport couple hopes its lawsuit against a major manufacturer of defective Chinese drywall will be … |
| Congress Takes on Chinese Drywall Housing Wire These are the latest legislative actions taken by Congress to address the Chinese drywall situation. A Consumer Product Safety Commission-led task force, … |
| House Passes Chinese Drywall Resolution RealEstateRama … resolving this problem,†said Posey who recently toured several homes in Indian River County that have been affected by contaminated Chinese drywall. … |
| House Passes Glenn Nye’s Resolution to Aid Toxic Drywall Victims RealEstateRama … in Hampton Roads affected by toxic drywall. “I have seen firsthand the physical, emotional, and financial burden toxic Chinese drywall creates,†said … |
Federal Judge Announces Breakthrough Agreement in Chinese Drywall Litigation
NEW ORLEANS, Nov. 3 /PRNewswire/ — Judge Eldon E. Fallon announced yesterday
that Knauf Plasterboard (Tianjin) Co., Ltd. (KPT), one of the Chinese drywall
manufacturers involved in recent defective drywall complaints, has offered to
accept service of process of an omnibus class action complaint. This will
allow claimants with KPT drywall to consolidate their claims in one lawsuit
against KPT.
All federal litigation involving defective drywall products has been
consolidated in the multidistrict litigation, MDL 2047, pending in the United
States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, before Judge
Fallon. Since its inception in June of 2009, the litigation has been
proceeding rapidly, with the first of several bellwether trials scheduled to
begin in January 2010 in New Orleans, Louisiana. A copy of the order can be
found online at: http://www.laed.uscourts.gov/Drywall/Orders/PTO17.pdf
Until today, KPT had required that service of process of any lawsuit be made
through the Hague Convention, which sets forth the method for the service of
process abroad. This waiver of service is an unprecedented occurrence, as
service of process under the Hague Convention has been an obstacle for many
litigants involved attempting to file against international companies in the
past. The Hague Convention for the Service of Process Abroad requires
claimants to pay approximately $15,000 per lawsuit, which allows for the
translation of legal documents into Chinese and to have them presented to the
appropriate authorities in the Peoples Republic of China to obtain service on
the Chinese drywall manufacturers.
“This agreement is the equivalent of an invitation to all claimants, that were
reluctant before, to get their claims on record without the hassle, delay or
expense of service through the Hague,” said Arnold Levin of Levin, Fishbein,
Sedran & Berman, Plaintiffs’ Lead Counsel for all Chinese drywall cases. “This
will streamline the legal process that claimants have to go through by
eliminating the time-consuming and costly process of serving individual
complaints,” explains Leonard Davis, partner at Herman, Herman, Katz & Cotlar,
LLP, whose firm is serving as Plaintiffs’ Liaison Counsel for all Chinese
drywall cases. It is a huge breakthrough for all Plaintiffs whose lives have
been affected by defective Chinese drywall according to Plaintiffs’ counsel.
The court order provides that KPT will accept service of process and waive its
express rights under the Hague Convention only for homeowner plaintiffs who
are named in an omnibus class action complaint to be filed by December 9, 2009
in In re Chinese Drywall Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2047 (E.D.
La.). All claimants who wish to be included in this omnibus class action
complaint must submit proof that their properties contain KPT manufactured
drywall to Plaintiffs’ Lead Counsel, Arnold Levin of Levin, Fishbein, Sedran &
Berman, 510 Walnut Street, Suite 500, Philadelphia, PA 19106, by December 2,
2009.
Knauf Plasterboard (Tianjin) Co., Ltd., is alleged to be a subsidiary of the
German based Knauf Gips KG and is one of several Chinese companies that has
been accused of manufacturing and importing defective drywall from China into
the U.S. It is estimated that between 60,000 – 100,000 homes have been built
in the United States using the defective drywall between 2004 and 2008.
The defective drywall has been associated with unpleasant and potentially
harmful odors and fumes that corrode metals, including air conditioning units,
fixtures and other appliances.
SOURCE Herman, Herman, Katz & Cotlar, LLP
Nelson warns insurers not to drop homes with Chinese drywall
“I’ve heard from a number of my constituents who suffer every day from the adverse effects of contaminated Chinese drywall installed in their homes,” Nelson …
Relief for homeowners with Chinese drywall amidst insurance troubles
WVEC.com (subscription)
That’s because the Nguyens abandoned their old house which was filled with Chinese drywall, a corrosive, potentially toxic material they believe made them …
German drywall maker to face lawsuits
Bradenton Herald
By DUANE MARSTELLER – dmarsteller@bradenton.com MANATEE — A German drywall manufacturer that says it has nothing to do with Chinese drywall still is subject …
Official to Press China on Drywall Costs
Wall Street Journal
The Chinese drywall, also known as gypsum or wallboard, is under investigation for emitting sulfide fumes suspected of causing the homeowner complaints. …
Chinese Drywall News Alerts
USBC States the Importance of Certification in Remediation for …
PR.com (press release)
There are possibly hundreds of thousands of homes that have to be remediated from defective Chinese drywall in Florida alone. It has been reported that as …
Chinese drywall concerns in Newport News subdivision
By Patrick Terpstra, 13News NEWPORT NEWS – Nearly 70 homes in a Newport News neighborhood could be checked after Chinese drywall was found in one house. …
See all stories on this topic
Estero home tested for Chinese drywall lawsuits
NBC2 News
ESTERO: A federal judge has ordered 30 homes across the country be tested for Chinese drywall, to set a standard for all of the federal lawsuits surrounding …
See all stories on this topic
Editorial: Let’s see more action on drywall
The News-Press
That’s at least some help for people whose recently built or remodeled homes have been damaged or ruined by Chinese drywall, which smells like rotten eggs …
See all stories on this topic
Number of implicated Chinese drywall manufacturers may be about to jump sharply.
The number of Chinese drywall manufacturers responsible for corrosion and potential health problems plaguing U.S. homeowners may be about to increase substantially.
With the first set of home inspections about to begin in the massive combined Chinese drywall litigation playing out in New Orleans, lawyers involved in the case were told to document the different identifying markings on wallboard found in affected homes.
On Thursday, they revealed that 36 separate variations of tainted drywall have been found — a much higher number than previously disclosed.
While some manufacturers may have more than one way of marking their product and some markings were stamped by distributors, the three dozen variations opens the door to a host of new companies publicly joining the mix.
New players revealed in photographs filed with the court show names such as Crescent City Gypsum Inc., International Materials Trading, ProWall and Dragon Brand Drywall.
The disclosure came Thursday as U.S. District Court Judge Eldon E. Fallon, who is overseeing the multidistrict litigation, warned one of the Chinese manufacturers already identified — Taishan Gypsum Co. Ltd. — that he would issue a default judgment if it did not respond in the case.
Fallon also warned other defendants served with lawsuits who had failed to respond that he would consider granting default judgments against them.
At Thursday’s proceeding, he appeared ready to follow through.
The Mitchell Co., an Alabama home builder also active in Florida, had filed a motion Wednesday asking the court for a default judgment against Taishan Gypsum, which the builder was finally able to serve with its suit this summer in China.
Taishan, also known as Taian Taishan Plasterboard and Shandong Taihe Dongxin Co. Ltd., is controlled by the Beijing New Building Materials Public Limited Co., or BNBM, a state-owned entity controlled by the Chinese government.
Fallon said he would issue a preliminary default judgment against the manufacturer if it did not file an appearance before Sept. 24. The judge warned that what would then quickly follow would be a hearing to determine a final judgment against Taishan.
“I will set it for a hearing, you can present any evidence and I’ll issue a judgment, a monetary judgment, on that,” Fallon told the attorney for The Mitchell Co.
As the Herald-Tribune first reported in February, Taishan continued shipping drywall to the U.S. into 2007, after many other Chinese manufacturers had stopped. In summer 2007, for example, three Taishan shipments entered Port Everglades, totaling 3 million pounds.
It was New York’s ports that experienced perhaps the most activity when it came to Taishan drywall. In 2006 and 2007, ships bearing the company’s wallboard docked at least two dozen times at ports there, carrying a total of more than 4.5 million pounds of the material.
In addition to being absent from the court proceedings, Taishan and its parent company BNBM also have been tight-lipped when it comes to questions from the media.
A representative of BNBM previously contacted at the company’s office in Beijing said the company had “set up a work group looking into the case,” but disputed the Taishan board was defective.
The company has since refused to respond to questions about its activities.
Among the photographs submitted Thursday was one of drywall bearing the brand name of BNBM itself — not its Taishan subsidiary — showing the parent company also has its own variety of board causing problems in the U.S.
http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20090904/ARTICLE/909041046/-1/NEWSSITEMAP
Judge eyes January for trial on Chinese drywall
By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN
Associated Press Writer
NEW ORLEANS — A federal judge presiding over hundreds of lawsuits against Chinese drywall makers and installers said Thursday that he plans to hold the first trial in January for the cases, which claim the imported products emit sulfur, methane and other chemical compounds that have ruined homes and harmed residents’ health.
U.S. District Judge Eldon Fallon told attorneys that he expects them to pick six plaintiffs whose cases could be tried in early 2010, with the first trial starting in January.
Kerry Miller, a lead lawyer for companies named as defendants in the suits, said defense attorneys may need more time to prepare for the first batch of bellwether trials. Russ Herman, a lead plaintiffs lawyer, said he supports Fallon’s scheduling plan.
“I wish we could begin trials next week. We’re ready,” Herman said after the hearing.
Fallon said the first batch of trials would be limited to damage claims and wouldn’t include plaintiffs who blame Chinese drywall for health problems.
Around 400 plaintiffs and 20 defendants have filled out “profile forms” for the litigation, but Herman estimated that plaintiffs lawyers represent around 6,000 clients with claims.
Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin, a company based in China, is the only drywall manufacturer to have filled out a profile form; most of the companies are home builders. Knauf Tianjin spokeswoman Melisa Mendez Chantres said the company is investigating and trying to resolve homeowners’ complaints.
“KPT’s primary focus has always been ensuring the health and safety of the end-users of its product,” she said in a statement. “It responded immediately to inquiries by builders that raised health concerns and hired highly regarded experts, who determined that there were no health risks to persons in the homes.”
Herman said he expects several dozen other Chinese drywall manufacturers to respond to the litigation in coming weeks.
Thirty properties owned by plaintiffs are scheduled to be inspected in the coming days. Fifteen are in Florida, eight are in Louisiana, four are in Mississippi, and one each are in Alabama, North Carolina and Virginia.
Fallon said the protocols for the inspections could be “tweaked” before the next batch of roughly 1,000 inspections.
“You can think you’ve done the protocol in the proper way, but until you carry it out, until you conduct inspections, you really don’t know,” he said.
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/florida/AP/story/1216209.html
Thousands of Americans say Chinese drywall is ruining their homes, making them ill
Saturday, August 29, 2009
By Cindy Skrzycki, GlobalPost
On the outside, they are new and sunny looking. On the inside, they are strange-smelling and rotting. These are the thousands of new houses built in the United States within the past few years that owners allege may contain yet another problem export from China: bad drywall.
Since 2006, new home owners in 23 states have been suffering from what they say are odorous batches of corrosive drywall that were imported from at least one gypsum mine in China and used by U.S home builders.
Owners say their houses smell like rotten eggs and are causing breathing problems and skin irritations. They worry their homes have become worthless, as air conditioners and other mechanical parts corrode and become nonfunctioning. The problem is thought to be high levels of sulfur-compound gases being released from the drywall.
Homes that are affected were built in the aftermath of hurricanes in 2005 when building booms in Florida and Louisiana contributed to domestic drywall shortages, causing suppliers to look to China.
Unlike other tainted imports from China — such as formula, toothpaste and pet food, which can be swiftly taken off retail shelves — gypsum drywall cannot be easily removed since it is behind walls and ceilings, affecting the performance of plumbing, wiring, and electrical systems.
Attorneys representing homeowners estimate more than 2,000 lawsuits already have been filed in state and federal courts, targeting Chinese, U.S. and German companies, as well as builders, installers, suppliers, distributors and import brokers.
“We expect about 20 manufacturers of Chinese drywall to be involved in these cases,” said Jeremy Alters, an attorney in Miami handling many of the cases. “There is no quality control in this drywall. It’s hard to believe no one knew it was bad. It is destroying homes and it will cost billions.”
One of the most prominent Chinese manufacturers named is Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin Co. Ltd. Others are Knauf Plasterboard Wuhu Co. Ltd and Knauf Plasterboard Dongguan Co. Ltd., as well as a German affiliate, Knauf Gips KG. There are numerous other Chinese companies being added to legal complaints as time goes on, such as Beijing New Building Material PLC.
So serious are the potential cost and health implications that several U.S. federal agencies, members of Congress, states and health and legal authorities are assessing the scope of the problem.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission in Washington is leading the investigation. It received permission from the Chinese government to send a team of scientists and compliance officials to China on Aug. 16 to investigate what is thought to be the source of the problem — the Luneng mine in Shandong province, and other mines in the area.
“To visit the mines that this came out of will be a valuable part of our investigation,” said Scott Wolfson, CPSC spokesman.
The agency estimates 6.2 million sheets of the drywall were imported into the United States. At least three dozen builders are involved, not counting those who went out of business during the current economic crisis.
Some 810 complaints have been filed with the CPSC.
“I have personally visited a number of these homes and have seen firsthand how serious this situation is for families living with this toxic drywall,” said Rep. Robert Wexler, D-Fla.
Mr. Wexler, a leader in the newly formed, 14-member Congressional Contaminated Drywall Caucus, said homeowners have reported bronchitis, pneumonia and other respiratory illnesses, while “pregnant women have been instructed … to move out of their homes to avoid health risks to their unborn children.”
Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09241/993994-28.stm#ixzz0PlDUc3Ri