319 A.3d 715
Vt.2024Background
- Plaintiff Shirley Ann Carpin, on behalf of her mother's estate, brought negligence and wrongful death claims against Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corporation and Clifton Associates.
- Plaintiff alleged her mother, Shirley Hilster, developed and died from mesothelioma as a result of exposure to asbestos brought home by her husband, who worked at Vermont Yankee between 1971-1972.
- Hilster's last possible exposure to asbestos was in 1995, when her husband retired; she was diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2020 and died that same year.
- Plaintiff filed the lawsuit in July 2021, over twenty-five years after the last exposure.
- The trial court granted summary judgment for defendants, holding plaintiffs’ claims were barred by the twenty-year statute of repose in 12 V.S.A. § 518(a).
- Plaintiff appealed, arguing the statute did not bar her claim and further that the statute violated the Vermont Constitution.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether § 518(a)’s 20-year statute of repose bars the claim | "Last occurrence" should be latent cellular changes/diagnosis in 2020 | "Last occurrence" is last asbestos exposure in 1995 | Claim barred; last exposure controls |
| Definition of "last occurrence" under the statute | Cellular injuries before diagnosis are the actionable event | Last external exposure is the actionable event | Statutory text requires last proximate external cause |
| Constitutionality under Vt. Const. Art. 7 | Statute arbitrarily disadvantages latent-disease victims | Time limits are a valid legislative choice, fairly applied | Statute is constitutional |
| Article 4—Remedy clause | Statute denies adequate remedy for injury | Statute provides a fair process within legislative prerogative | No violation found; inadequately briefed |
Key Cases Cited
- Cavanaugh v. Abbott Laboratories, 145 Vt. 516 (Vt. 1985) (interpreted "last occurrence" under statute of repose to mean the most recent proximate cause of injury, not simply exposure)
- Campbell v. Stafford, 2011 VT 11 (Vt. 2011) (agent under statute refers to external source, not internal bodily process)
- Baker v. State, 170 Vt. 194 (Vt. 1999) (establishes Article 7 test for equal protection under Vermont Constitution)
- Vermont Human Rights Comm’n v. State Agency of Transp., 2012 VT 88 (Vt. 2012) (upheld time limits on claims as not violating constitutional rights)
- Quinlan v. Five-Town Alliance, Inc., 2018 VT 53 (Vt. 2018) (upheld procedural requirements for claims as reasonable legislative policy)