A San Francisco Superior Court jury awarded $10.3 million in economic and non-economic damages Monday in an asbestos case brought by a 60-year-old man allegedly suffering from mesothelioma.

Even in the best case scenario, plaintiff George Barnes won't collect nearly that much. The jury only attributed 15 percent of the harm to Thorpe Insulation Co., the lone named defendant at trial.

It’s unlikely that Thorpe Insulations will not have the assets to pay. In which case the insurance companies will be sued and the asbestos litigation will be tied up for years to come. The jury attributed 15 percent of Barnes' harm to Thorpe, 5 percent to the plaintiff himself, 55 percent to his former employer, the U.S. Navy, and 25 percent to other manufacturers and distributors. (law.com)