Overly
Overly v. Ingalls Shipbuilding, Inc.
Opinion
Opinion
Haerle, J.
I. Introduction
Robert and Louise Overly (the Overlys) sued Ingalls Shipbuilding, Inc. (Ingalls) and others for personal injury and loss of consortium resulting from Robert’s exposure to asbestos. A jury found Ingalls and another defendant, Avondale Industries, Inc. (Avondale), guilty of negligence and awarded the Overlys substantial damages. In this appeal, Ingalls argues: (1) the trial court made erroneous evidentiary rulings which mandate reversal of the judgment; (2) Ingalls was denied a fair trial because the jury was not given evidence pertaining to defendants who did not participate at trial; (3) the trial court erred by allowing the Overlys to recover future economic damages for the period of Robert Overly’s shortened life expectancy; and (4) the trial court’s allocation of prior settlements between this case and a prospective wrongful death case was erroneous.
We reject each of Ingalls’s arguments and affirm the judgment,
II. Statement of Facts
A. Background
Robert H. Overly (Robert) was born in 1922 and married Louise in November 1949. They have two adult daughters. In January 1996, Robert was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining of the lung…