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May 14, 2008

Lead-paint appeals before court, and on Web, tomorrow

PROVIDENCE -- For the first time, the public tomorrow may view live video on the Internet of arguments in a state Supreme Court case.

A Webcast of arguments being made for the historic lead-paint case at the Licht Judicial Complex can be viewed by going to www.courts.ri.gov. Click on the link at the lower left of the Web page.

The court is giving lawyers about 3½ hours, starting at 9 a.m. tomorrow, to argue over appeals in one of the biggest cases in the state’s history, the state lawsuit that prompted a jury to find that three corporations created a public nuisance when they sold toxic, lead-based paint in Rhode Island several generations ago.

Chief Justice Frank J. Williams decided to allow the Webcast because of strong interest across the country from lawyers, legal publications, brokers and investment companies, according to courts spokesman Craig N. Berke.

Business interests think the case is a bad precedent that could lead to more costly litigation over other products. Local government officials and health-care advocates believe it’s a worthwhile effort to hold the companies liable for all the damage their paints have done to generations of children who have inadvertently ingested lead paint dust and suffered nervous system damage.

Since the three companies — Sherwin Williams Co., Millennium Holdings and NL Industries — were found by a six-person jury on Feb. 22, 2006, to have created a public nuisance by selling their paints, the state has estimated that the companies may have to spend between $1.37 billion and $3.74 billion to clean up the paints at thousands of homes in Rhode Island.

At the courthouse itself, public seating for the arguments will be available on a first-come, first-served basis, starting at 8:30 a.m. A conference room equipped with a video screen will be available for overflow seating, if necessary.

— Journal environment writer Peter B. Lord

Posted by Andrea Panciera  at 12:26 PM | Permalink

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