Civil Procedure Keyed to Cound
Celotex Corp. v. Catrett
ProfessorTodd Berman
CaseCast™ – "What you need to know"
Facts
Respondent brought suit against a number of named defendants including the Petitioner, alleging that her husband’s death was facilitated by exposure to products containing asbestos that were manufactured by the Petitioner and defendants. At trial, Petitioner’s summary judgment motion stated that Respondent could produce no evidence that Petitioner’s products were the proximate cause of any injuries and further, that she could produce no witnesses to attest otherwise. Respondent then produced three documents which she claimed demonstrated a genuine material fact dispute. Respondent also argued the documents established the decedent had been exposed to the Petitioner’s asbestos products. The documents included a deposition of the deceased, a letter from an official of one of the decedent’s former employers, whom Petitioner planned to call as a trial witness and a letter from an insurance company to the Respondent’s attorney. The Petitioner argued the documents were inadmissible hearsay and could not be presented in opposition to the summary judgment motion. The district court granted the motion. On appeal, the Court of Appeals held that Petitioner’s summary judgment motion was defective since Petitioner made no effort to show any evidence to support the motion. Petitioner appealed.
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