Asbestos litigation in Texas just became a lot harder. The Texas Supreme Court recently overturned a Corpus Christi mechanic’s $169,000 damage award because he failed to quantify how much asbestos had been inhaled on the job.

Arturo Flores, working a mechanic for more than 30 years, was exposed to asbestos every time he ground brake pads (the pads contained anywhere from 7 to 28 percent asbestos). He developed asbestosis, an incurable and debilitating lung condition.

On appeal, Borg-Warner, who lost at trial, claimed that Mr. Flores could not quantify how much asbestos he had inhaled and how much were from their brakes. The court reasoned that Mr. Flores did not show how much asbestos could have been inhaled or whether the amounts were sufficient to cause asbestosis.

Since the testing required to prove this new, higher standard is expensive, victims will now have a much harder time winning in court.