Poston v. Smith, Civil Action No. CV94-573

This article is part of the Tobacco portal on Sourcewatch funded from 2006 - 2009 by the American Legacy Foundation.

Poston V. Smith was a secondhand smoke workers compensation case in which the claimant, Debora Poston, sued her former employer for workers' compensation benefits based on her workplace exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke . The case was settled under undisclosed terms on September 17, 1996.

Poston, a legal secretary, claimed she developed chronic sinusitis from ETS exposure while employed by Smith, an attorney, in 1992-1993. The circuit court originally dismissed Poston's claim, finding that "an occupational disease" must result from a hazard that was "peculiar to the job or profession," and that "exposure to second hand smoke is not peculiar to the environment and duties of a law office nor is it related in any way to its function or operation." An appeals court reversed that ruling on July 21, 1995, and remanded the case to the circuit court "to assure that procedural safeguards are provided." Both parties filed motions for summary judgment on remand. The court denied Smith's motion for summary judgment on May 17, 1996. Poston's motion was pending when the case was settled.

Title: Workplace Exposure Cases
Date: 19980800/E
Type: Report
Bates No: 2072138002/8071
Collection: Philip Morris
Pages: 70, this item on Page 25 of the PDF of the document

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