In a case of first impression now on appeal, a plaintiffs lawyer is trying to apply an asbestos-litigation strategy to a lead-poisoning suit.

Newark, N.J., solo Vincent Russo knew he had a difficult task of proving liability in Baker v. Peoples, ESL-L-2044-09, given that the child suffering from the illness resided in five apartments in New Jersey’s Newark, Irvington and East Orange in the first five years of his life.