We are informed by someone familiar with the case that the Tennessee Supreme Court has ruled in favor of the plaintiff in a multi-million dollar lawsuit against Alcoa.

The case involves the death of a Mr. Satterfield's daughter from mesothelioma, a highly lethal form of cancer that is almost exclusively caused by exposure to asbestos. The lawsuit alleges she contracted mesothelioma from exposure to asbestos fibers brought home on the work clothes of her father, an Alcoa employee, as a "direct result of negligent acts and omissions" by Alcoa and co-defendant Breeding Insulation.

The ruling upholds the Tennessee Court of Appeals reversal of Blount County Circuit Court Judge W. Dale Young's dismissal of the case. The appeals court had previously overturned Young's dismissal, reinstated the case, and ordered Alcoa to pay for the appeal. There is no word yet on what's next or whether the case will be remanded back to Blount County Circuit Court.

Developing...

UPDATE: We just spoke with attorney Greg Coleman who represents Doug Satterfield, the plaintiff in the case. He said it is a big victory, most importantly for Mr. Satterfield and the Satterfield family.

Mr. Coleman said the Tennessee Supreme Court ruled that Alcoa owes a duty to Amanda Satterfield, the late daughter of Doug Satterfield, regarding exposure to hazardous workplace materials (asbestos in this case).

In an unprecedented ruling that Mr. Coleman said "changes the law in Tennessee," the State Supreme Court also ruled that such duty also extends beyond the employee and immediate family members to anyone having "close and repeated contact." This would include, for example, a maid who routines does laundry contaminated with hazardous materials, or people exposed from riding in a car pool.

The ruling effectively expands the "class of persons" to include anyone with close and repeated contact. Mr. Coleman said it is the first case of its type in the state.

The court told Alcoa that there should be limits, but that Alcoa had to make a case as to why their duty does not extend to this class of persons.

With the State Supreme Court ruling, the case is remanded back to the Blount County Circuit Court and Judge W. Dale Young.

Attached is the full Tennessee Supreme Court ruling.

The Maryville Daily Times files this report on moves by Judge Meares to clarify local court rules regarding distribution of civil cases.

Blount Co. Republicans are characterizing it as election year politics. So apparently judges aren't supposed to do anything to clarify local court rules (which they set) or improve efficiency when there's an upcoming election. Maybe they should stop hearing cases, too, just to be on the safe side.

But seriously, this sounds like a lot of judicial inside baseball to me. At least the Daily Times ran a mostly factual report explaining what it's all about, if anyone cares. You can look elsewhere for the sensationalized tabloid version.

They Maryville Daily Times today retracted portions of a previous story regarding a controversial divorce case.

Here is the full text of the retraction.

This action followed four days after the husband's attorney wrote to the editor complaining about coverage of this and another case, suggesting there could be legal consequences for the paper. Here is the full text of that letter.

The original article about the divorce controversy is gone from the Daily Times website. The woman's attorney, however, had previously remarked on the case here in comments. His remarks are here.

Last night, her attorney reacted to news of the Dally Times retraction here in comments. His remarks are here.

At the center of this controversy is Blount County Circuit Court Judge W. Dale Young and his actions in this and two other controversial cases also covered by the Daily Times:

• Immigrant: Judge told me to go home

• Judge Young subject of judicial conduct review

• Protection case patience urged (KNS)

• Judge Young responds to Calixto appeal

• Mom’s religion dominates custody hearing

So now, everyone at BlountViews is up to date on all of these unfortunate situations. At this point, all of this needs to be settled among the litigants, their attorneys, the courts, and if necessary the Tennessee Court of the Judiciary judicial conduct review process.

If anyone has further discussion, comment, complaints, or evidence, it should be directed to the appropriate parties. They are:

Attorney for Mrs. Wright
Thomas F. Mabry
P. O. Box 52385
Knoxville, TN 37950
Fax 1-888-215-3119
Phone 1-865-271-9224

Attorney for Mr. Wright
Craig L. Garrett
Attorney at Law
607 Smithview Drive
Maryville, TN 37803

Judge W. Dale Young
Circuit Court - Division I
946 E. Lamar Alexander Parkway
Maryville, TN 37804
Phone (865) 273-5550
Fax (865) 273-5558

Tennessee Court of the Judiciary
Disciplinary Counsel
511 Union Street, Suite 600
Nashville, TN 37219-1768
Phone: 615-741-2687

The Maryville Daily Times
307 E. Harper Ave.
Maryville, TN 37804
Phone: 865-981-1100
F. Max Croster, Publisher, 865-981-1134
Larry Aldridge, Editor, 865-981-1115