Ohio S.B. 63: Ohio Asbestos Over-Naming Prevention Statute

Article by Brooke Seiler, Esq.

On January 8, 2025, Ohio became one of five states to legislatively curtail “over-naming” in asbestos lawsuits. In Ohio, and many other jurisdictions, asbestos lawsuits are known for having a laundry list of defendants. The average number of defendants in an Ohio asbestos suit is over twenty, with one suit filed in 2019 that named over 100 defendants.

Senate Bill 63, to be codified at Ohio Revised Code 2307.931, will impose additional requirements for plaintiffs to justify the defendants that are named in the complaint. Within 60 days of filing a complaint, a plaintiff must provide a sworn statement ?that contains all of the following information:

• The plaintiff’s name, address, date of birth, marital status, occupation, smoking history, worksites, and employers;
• The name of any witness knowledgeable about the exposures;
• The asbestos-containing product of each defendant;
• The sites that establish a direct connection between the plaintiff and each defendant;
• The beginning and end dates of each exposure;
• The asbestos-related disease; and
• Any supporting documentation

If a plaintiff fails to name a product or site that is linked to a defendant, the statute permits that defendant to file a motion to dismiss without prejudice. The statute does allow for some discretion from the trial court, allowing a court to keep a defendant in the case “upon a showing of good cause.” Only time will tell how Courts will interpret “good cause” efforts in response to a motion to dismiss based on this statute.

This legislation is a boon to companies that have been forced to bear the cost of litigation and offers a means by which to be expeditiously removed from lawsuits. It will save unnecessary costs and further streamline the litigation against fewer culpable entities to proceed more quickly and efficiently for plaintiffs.