May 2004 Asbestos Legislation Be Applied To Dismiss Claims Filed Before Law Took Effect?
Linda Ackison, as Administratrix of the Estate of Danny Ackison v. Anchor Packing Co. et al., Case nos. 2007-0219 and 2007-0415 4th District Court of Appeals (Lawrence County) ISSUE: Section 28, Article II of the Ohio Constitution prohibits the General Assembly from enacting a “retroactive law” that takes away or impairs a substantive right that was vested before the law was passed. In this case, the Court is asked to decide whether the legislature violated the constitution by making new evidentiary requirements for asbestos-related lawsuits enacted in September 2004 retroactive to suits that were filed before the effective date of that legislation. BACKGROUND: Danny Ackison retired in 2000 after 36 years of working as a laborer at the Dayton Malleable plant in Ironton. One year later he was diagnosed with asbestos-related thickening in the walls of his lungs. In 2003 he was diagnosed with cancer of the esophagus. Following Mr. Ackison’s death in December 2003, his widow, Linda Ackison
