First Chinese Drywall Trial Set for January 2010, Federal Judge Says
The first of hundreds of lawsuits filed by home owners who say they are victims of defective Chinese drywall will begin early next year, a federal judge said.
U.S. District Judge Eldon Fallon is presiding over the suits filed on behalf of property owners who say defective wall board imported from China during the early 1990s building boom are emitting foul odors and corroding metal wiring in home appliances.
In addition to extensive property damage, many residents have complained of respiratory problems and other health complications caused by Chinese drywall.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission recently said it has received more than 1,300 complaints from property owners in 26 states and the District of Columbia. Most of the complaints have come from Florida, where officials suspect the high humidity is negatively reacting with compounds in the drywall to produce damaging sulfur, methane, and other gasses.
The suits accuse Chinese drywall manufacturer, Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin, and other foreign companies of supplying the defective building materials. Also named in some suits are U.S.-based home builders who installed the drywall in thousands of homes, according to report on Nola.com.
Fallon recently told plaintiffs’ attorneys in the cases that he wants the attorneys to select six plaintiffs from the stack of cases to combine into one trial, to begin in January. The outcome of the first trial likely will be watched closely as a test case of sorts and could largely determine how hundreds of other cases might turn out.
The first trial will deal only with plaintiffs who blame defective Chinese drywall for causing property damage. Lawsuits alleging physical injuries from the building materials will be included in later trials, Fallon said.
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