In 2014, plaintiff’s decedent Robert “Bob” Swanson, a retired plumber and pipe fitter, was diagnosed with mesothelioma, which is an aggressive, incurable cancer that often stems from exposure to asbestos. After spending four years in the U.S. Navy during the Vietnam War, Swanson returned to Michigan and began working as a plumber for a small plumbing company, which was primarily involved in installing boilers made by Weil-McLain, a division of The Marley-Wylain Co., from 1969 to 1978. During that time, Swanson installed new boilers and maintained boilers that had previously been installed. He eventually moved to California in 1979 and worked for the next several decades in HVAC. Swanson continued to work in the HVAC field until he retired in 2005. Nine years later, he was diagnosed with mesothelioma. He eventually died from the disease two years later, in 2016. The decedent’s adult son, Shawn Swanson, acting individually and on behalf of his father’s estate, sued Weil-McLain; Marley-Wylain Co.; and various other companies, such as A.O. Smith Water Products Co., that were believed to have manufactured, distributed and/or worked with asbestos-containing products to which the decedent was allegedly exposed. Shawn Swanson’s complaint was coordinated with hundreds of other cases that were pending in different counties that shared common questions of fact or law regarding direct and indirect exposure, and involved many of the same defendants. The cases were joined in one court, the Los Angeles County Superior Court. Many of those cases were put on hold while awaiting a decision regarding an appellate case involving indirect exposure. Shawn Swanson’s complaint ultimately proceeded to trial against Weil-McLain, which was a division of Marley-Wylain, as A.O. Smith and all other defendants had been dismissed or had resolved their claims before the matter went to trial. The decedent’s deposition testimony, which was taken before his death, was presented at trial. He claimed that he was unaware that the Weil-McLain boilers contained asbestos gaskets, which he installed and removed while maintaining the boilers. He also claimed that he sometimes had to scrape the gaskets to remove them and that Weil-McLain supplied him with a bag of cement that was used for sealing the connections to the boiler flue. The decedent further claimed that he was never told that the provided sealing cement was, in fact, 100 percent asbestos. Plaintiffs’ counsel contended that Weil-McLain was negligent for failing to warn about the asbestos used in its boilers, including the repackaged, 100 percent pure asbestos that it provided for use with the boilers. Counsel also argued that Weil-McLain’s actions were grossly negligent. Plaintiff’s counsel noted that Weil-McLain’s corporate representative testified that between the years of 1969 to 1974, Weil-McLain never warned about asbestos in its product and that it had no warnings on its boilers or in its manuals. Counsel also noted that Weil-McLain admitted that it obtained the cement it sent out on some of its boilers from Johns Manville, a manufacturer of insulation, roofing materials and engineered products, and that the cement came in 50- or 100-pound bags, which Weil-McLain would repackage into 2-, 5- or 10-pound, brown, paper bags. Plaintiff’s counsel further noted that Weil-McLain stated that it did not have any writing on the bags telling workers that it contained asbestos until 1974. In addition, plaintiff’s counsel presented video testimony of a Johns Manville representative, who claimed that there were warnings on the Johns Manville bags about dangers of asbestos by 1965 or 1966, at the latest, and noted that Weil-McLain admitted that it did not pass on the Johns Manville warning. Weil-McLain’s counsel contended that there was no need to warn about asbestos, that the plumbing company was in a better position to warn the decedent and that any alleged chrysotile asbestos exposure was insufficient to cause the decedent’s disease. Instead, counsel argued that the decedent’s mesothelioma was caused by others, including the Navy., Robert Swanson was diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2014. Prior to his diagnosis, he had no significant illnesses or surgeries. However, after his diagnosis, he underwent an extrapleural pneumonectomy to remove the cancerous lung, followed by chemotherapy and radiation. His vocal cords were damaged during the procedure. Swanson died just 16 months later, in 2016, at the age of 68. He left behind his adult son, Shawn Swanson, his only surviving heir. The decedent was born and raised in Michigan, and moved from Michigan to California in 1979 to obtain work. He continued to work in the HVAC field until he retired in 2005. The decedent remained in California until his death in 2016. The decedent’s estate sought recovery of wrongful death damages and Shawn Swanson, individually, sought recovery for the loss of his father’s services, parental training, guidance, society and companionship. Marley-Wylain’s counsel disputed the nature and extent of damages.