With sworn jurors waiting in the wings, a pair of asbestos suits in San Francisco Superior Court are on hold as the 1st District Court of Appeal reviews a judge’s 11th-hour decision to send both cases to trial before the same jury.

In San Francisco, bundling similar asbestos cases filed by the same plaintiff firm is not uncommon. What’s unusual, at least from the defense perspective, is grouping cases that involve different types of cancer.