Bartel v. Alcoa Steamship Co.

REAVLEY, Circuit Judge:

This consolidated action involves claims arising from the plaintiffs’ alleged exposure to asbestos aboard vessels operated or owned by the various defendants. We must determine whether the cases, originally filed in state court, properly belong in federal court.

Plaintiffs Silas B. Bishop, Joseph L. Dennis, and Lawrence R. Craig worked for decades as merchant mariners aboard many different vessels and for many different employers. With their respective lawsuits, each alleges that he was exposed to asbestos over the course of his service and suffered serious disease or…