Drywall getting its day in court

The company’s attorneys also want the judge to ban any reference to the drywall as being harmful, toxic or noxious.

In turn, plaintiff attorneys want to exclude four defense experts who contend, among other things, that most of a home’s metal components don’t have to be removed and replaced as part of a drywall fix.

The legal maneuvering is taking place because the stakes are huge: The cumulative cost of repairing U.S. homes with corrosive Chinese drywall could range from $8 billion to $10 billion, insurance publication National Underwriters recently estimated.

As one of the largest known Chinese drywall manufacturers in the legal case, KPT will seek to limit the extent — and thus, the cost and its liability — of required remediation.

“This is the first time they (KPT) have given themselves the opportunity to tell the whole world its theory” for remediation, Weinstein said.

For an earlier court hearing, KPT argued that an air-filtration system would work and that no drywall had to be removed from affected homes. But the company abruptly pulled out on the eve of the hearing when Fallon refused to consider the proposed fix, saying there wasn’t enough science supporting it.

Plaintiff attorneys, meanwhile, will argue this week that gutting homes to the studs is the best way to fix those with corrosive drywall. They will argue that KPT and other drywall makers should compensate homeowners for ruined electronics, living expenses while outside the Chinese-drywall home and other property damages.

The trial is expected to last about a week, Weinstein said.