Georgia-Pacific LLC v. Fields

The defendants presented sufficient evidence, in the form of allegations contained in the plaintiffs' complaint and a sworn information form, to preclude partial summary judgment on the issue of nonparty fault in the plaintiffs' asbestos case.

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This Court granted a writ of certiorari to the Court of Appeals in Union Carbide Corp. v. Fields, 315 Ga. App. 554 726 SE2d 521 2012, which involves assignment of tort liability to entities who are not parties to the suit, as provided for in OCGA § 51-12-33 c. Finding that the Court of Appeals erred in Division 1 d of its opinion in holding that admissions concerning the nonparties found in the pleadings and elsewhere did not constitute evidence for the purpose of summary judgment, and also erred in applying the “right for any reason” rule to the issue, we reverse.

As set forth in the opinion of the Court of Appeals, and as revealed in the record before the trial court, the facts of the case are the following. Rhonda Fields “Mrs. Fields” suffers from peritoneal mesothelioma allegedly contracted as a result of her childhood exposure to asbestos dust from various sources. She and her husband “the Fields” alleged in their complaint, and the accompanying sworn information form of Mrs. Fields, see OCGA § 51-14-7, that Georgia-Pacific, LLC and Union Carbide Corporation “Defendants”, as well as a number of other companies, were responsible for either mining, manufacturing, processing, importing, converting, compounding, selling, or distributing the asbestos-containing products to which Mrs. Fields was exposed. The Fields separately reached settlements with a number of nonparty entities and original defendants, and in pleadings subsequent to the original complaint, omitted any allegation that Central Moloney, Inc. “Central Moloney”, Nehring Electrical Works Co. “Nehring”, Phelps Dodge Cable & Wire “Phelps Dodge”,1 Southern States LLC “Southern States”, and Southwire Company “Southwire” collectively “nonparty entities” were responsible for Mrs. Fields’s injuries.

Georgia-Pacific LLC v. Fields

The defendants presented sufficient evidence, in the form of allegations contained in the plaintiffs' complaint and a sworn information form, to preclude partial summary judgment on the issue of nonparty fault in the plaintiffs' asbestos case.

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