CORRECTING and REPLACING West-Pac Industries and Tools Exchange Held Liable for Over $58 Million in Defective O-Ring Lawsuit.

Business Editors/Legal Writers

CORRECTION...by Greene, Broillet, Panish & Wheeler

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 23, 2004

In BW5925 issued March 23, 2004: First graph, third sentence of release, the case name should read: Griggs vs. West-Pac Industries, et al., Case No. BC 216425 (sted 216525).

The corrected release reads:

WEST-PAC INDUSTRIES AND TOOLS EXCHANGE HELD LIABLE FOR OVER $58 MILLION IN DEFECTIVE O-RING LAWSUIT

West-Pac Industries and Tools Exchange were found negligent today by a Los Angeles Superior Court jury, which awarded plaintiff Joseph Bryant Griggs over $58 million after three-and-a-half days of deliberation. A heavy equipment operator, Griggs was severely burned as the result of a defective O-ring which had been imported from Taiwan by Tools Exchange of Chatsworth, Calif., and distributed by West-Pac Industries of Huntington Beach, Calif. The trial began February 2, 2004, and Judge Victor Person presided over the case, Griggs vs. West-Pac Industries, et. al., Case No. BC 216425. Plaintiff was represented by Brian J. Panish and Christine D. Spagnoli with the Santa Monica, Calif., law firm of Greene, Broillet, Panish & Wheeler, LLP.

On September 10, 1998, Mr. Griggs was operating a Caterpillar J-621 paddle wheel scraper, and was grading land for a self storage facility in Valley Springs, Calif., when the machine's O-ring failed. The scraper's cab filled with fire, and Mr. Griggs' body was fully engulfed in flames, forcing him to leap to the ground. At the University of California Davis Burn Center, it was determined that he had suffered third-degree burns to more than 75% of his body. He was later transferred to the Grossman Burn Center and was treated by Dr. Richard Grossman. To date, Mr. Griggs has undergone more than 25 surgeries and has incurred more than $3.5 million in medical expenses, and will require several more years of burn reconstruction surgery.

"We applaud the jury's decision," said Brian J. Panish, "which sends a strong message to parts manufacturers and distributors that they will be held accountable for the poorly made and defective products that they import and distribute in the United States. Defective O-rings were at the heart of the Griggs and Challenger tragedies, and it is our hope that this case will act as a catalyst to prevent this type of accident from happening again."

Editor's Note:

Plaintiffs Joseph Bryant Griggs and his wife, Nancy Sue Miller Griggs, were represented by Brian J. Panish and Christine D. Spagnoli with the Santa Monica, Calif., law firm of Greene, Broillet, Panish & Wheeler, LLP; Tel: [phone]; www.gbpwlaw.com.

Defendant West-Pac Industries is based in Huntington Beach, Calif.; Tel: [phone]. The company was represented by Steven J. Joffe with the Los Angeles law firm of Wilson, Elser, Moskowitz, Edelman & Dicker; Tel: [phone].

Defendant Tools Exchange was sold through a series of interconnected transactions during 2002, with Defendants MCC Electronics Corporation, Micro Commercial Components Corporation and Bridgecraft Corporation becoming collectively liable as successor corporations to Tools Exchange. Defendants are based in Chatsworth, Calif.; Tel: [phone], and were represented by Tom Y.K. Mei with the Santa Ana, Calif., law firm of Murchison & Cumming, LLP; Tel: [phone].