A $12.1 million verdict in a wrongful death case over mesothelioma caused by asbestos exposure surprised even the winning lawyers.

The jury came back in under two hours after a three-week trial in Ohio’s Lorain County Court of Common Pleas, according to Houston-based lead plaintiffs counsel Holly Peterson of Simon Greenstone Panatier. She tried the case with Frank Wathen and Sean Kerley of Simon Greenstone, and local counsel Joshua Grunda of Bevan & Associates.