The widow of a retired D.C. maintenance man will get a new chance to claim that she is owed compensation as a result of her husband’s death after the D.C. Court of Appeals ruled that a lower judge improperly tossed her asbestos suit. Plummer Debnam died of lung cancer and asbestos exposure in early 2004, after filing a lawsuit against several manufacturers, including Crane Co. He argued that the Stamford, Conn.-based engineering firm was at least partially liable for his asbestos-related illness because it took over the company that had originally manufactured the boilers on which he had spent his career working. After Debnam’s death, his wife, Mildred, continued the litigation. Judge Frederick Weisberg tossed Debnam’s suit, citing paragraph 17 of a 1959 agreement between Crane and National, the boiler company. The paragraph bound Crane to “assume, take over and perform all obligations of every kind whatsoever of National.” Weisberg ruled that the agreement did not apply to asbestos liability. A three-judge panel of the appellate court ruled Thursday, though, that the agreement was “ambiguous” and that Mildred Debnam ought to have a chance to prove it in court. “While the trial court’s interpretation of the language of paragraph 17 may be a reasonable interpretation, we do not agree that it is the only reasonable interpretation,” appellate Chief Judge Eric Washington wrote for his fellows. “As [Debnam] points out, another equally reasonable interpretation is that … Crane’s explicit promise included the warranty obligation that [Debnam] claims was breached in this case.” Debnam’s lawyer, Peter Enslein, called Thursday’s decision “a significant victory.” “It was very important for Mrs. Debnam, who loved her husband very much,” Enslein said. “The experience of watching him die was very hard.” An arbitrator has already awarded Debnam a seven-figure judgment against Crane’s old co-defendants. The exact amount was sealed by the arbitrator.
