A New Orleans federal courtroom will begin hearing an early test case in the Chinese-manufactured drywall products liability litigation today. In the case – Hernandez v. Knauf Gips KG – a New Orleans family contends that Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin Co. Ltd. produced drywall in their home that was “unsafe, defective and inherently dangerous.” The test trial will be heard by U.S. District Judge Eldon Fallon and its focus will be limited to property damage only. The Bradenton Herald notes that the case is among several hundred Chinese drywall lawsuits that have been consolidated into a single proceeding before a federal judge. It says the trial is likely to provide guidance on remediation that will make it easier to resolve future cases. As of February 17, 2010, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) had received 2,941 incident reports related to drywall from 37 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Ricko. […]

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