Sclafani

ORDER ON JOINT DEFENSE MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT REGARDING CAUSATION [339, 340, 342, 345]

This is a wrongful death product liability action brought by the survivors of David Sclafani. It is undisputed that Sclafani died from mesothelioma, a cancer associated with exposure to asbestos. Defendants’ motion addresses one prong of the liability analysis: causation. For purposes of resolving the motion, the Court assumes that defendants manufactured or supplied products containing asbestos, and that Sclafani came into contact with those products during his four years of service in the Navy. The sole issue for decision is whether there is a genuine factual dispute over causation, specifically, whether Sclafani’s exposure to defendants’ products “was, in reasonable medical probability, a substantial factor in causing or contributing to his risk of developing cancer.” Rutherford v. Owens-Illinois, Inc., 16 Cal.4th 953, 957-58 , 67 Cal.Rptr.2d 16 , 941 P.2d 1203 (1997).

I. BACKGROUND

Decedent David Sclafani enlisted in the Navy in January of 1960, serving as a boiler technician aboard the U.S.S. Morton from 1960 until 1963 and the U.S.S. Rogers for approximately six months in 1963.…