WR Grace:EPA wins in Supreme Court

Implications: Attempting to narrow the definition of asbestos to minimize lawsuit exposure will not be received well by our Supreme Court!

Analysis: WR Grace has been embroiled in the asbestos legal battle for quite some time.  Each time there is an unfavorable decision they seem to exhaust all avenues to obtain a more favorable ruling.  Their litigation has not just been in the Civil, but in criminal and extensive battles with the EPA on cleanup. One wonders with the ever increasing sensitivity in technology if it would not be prudent to stop the bleeding with a comprehensive settlement.  As each day goes by cleanup standards evolve & technology determines less and less tolerance to toxic exposure. Would you really believe that in defining what is considered to be asbestos there would be any difference.  Especially when it is likely that WR Grace's asbestos caused 2,000 illnesses and 225 deaths, let alone over 110,000 law suits. The trial set for the criminal allegations will proceed as scheduled as the Supreme Court with the same swift pen denying Grace's asbestos definition appeal, denied the Grace executives' appeal. The criminal allegations are said to be the next field for resolution. While Grace's stock seems to still wax & wane, one wonders whether the 3 billion settlement to get out of bankruptcy and the 250 million EPA settlement will take its toll.  Certainly their focused investment & expansion success is not being parallelled in the court system.