$7M lead paint case on tap at MS Supreme Court
Sherwin-Williams' appeal of a lead poisoning verdict
JACKSON, Miss., March 3, 2011 - On April 19, the (Mississippi Supreme Court) justices will hear Sherwin-Williams' appeal of a $7 million verdict from Jefferson County in favor of Trellvion Gaines, a former local high school sports star who alleged lead poisoning caused by the company's paint caused him developmental problems.
Sherwin-Williams says Gaines never produced enough evidence to merit that high of a jury award. It wants the verdict overturned and any resulting new trial to be located outside of Jefferson County.
"Plaintiff offered nothing but speculation by two family members and a friend that they had bought and used Sherwin-Williams' residential lead paint repeatedly, long after Sherwin-Williams stopped making and selling it in 1972," attorneys for the company wrote in a brief to the state Supreme Court, submitted June 28.
