U.S. District Court Grants Brush Wellman Motion for Summary Judgement in Oak Ridge Case.

Business Editors

CLEVELAND--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 6, 2001

Brush Wellman Inc. announced today that the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee has granted the company's motion for summary judgment in Troy Murphy Morgan, et ux. v. Brush Wellman Inc., et al.

The motion effectively ends the lawsuit which had been scheduled for trial August 6 in Knoxville.

The suit was filed in district court in 1994 by four plaintiffs and their spouses. The plaintiffs alleged they had become ill from handling beryllium or beryllium-containing products while working for Union Carbide Corporation or Martin Marietta Energy Systems, contractors at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Oak Ridge facility. Cabot Corporation and NGK Metals Corporation were also named as defendants.

In a statement, Brush Wellman said, "We are extremely pleased that the district court granted this motion. The court can be commended for being thorough and reasoned in evaluating Brush Wellman's position that it was not responsible for the health and safety of another company's employees.

"While we had every confidence in the strength of this case and believe strongly that we would have, once again, been vindicated by a jury, we are gratified not to have had to devote substantial and unnecessary time and resources to defend our position in a lengthy and complicated trial."

In a similar case concluded in late June in Jefferson County, Colorado, jurors unanimously decided for Brush Wellman. In that three-week trial, jurors agreed with Brush Wellman's argument that Brush adequately warned the DOE's Rocky Flats contractors of the need to properly protect workers from known unsafe levels of beryllium particulate. The case also exonerated Brush Wellman of the false and totally unsupported "conspiracy theory" advanced by the plaintiffs. Yesterday, the same Colorado court denied a motion by the plaintiffs for a new trial.

"Even though we have enormous sympathy for any individual whose life has been affected by chronic beryllium disease (CBD), Brush Wellman has maintained that it is not at fault in these cases. That position has been affirmed by independent arbiters who have consistently ruled in the company's favor," Brush Wellman added.

The company noted that The Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act (EEOICPA) provides a more expedient and certain benefit for eligible employees affected by CBD and other illnesses such as silicosis and radiation-induced cancer. In July, the EEOICPA began making tax-free $150,000 compensation payments to qualifying workers affected by CBD while working for the DOE, certain vendors or subcontractors throughout the nuclear weapons program.

Brush Wellman continues to work to end CBD and to minimize the risk to its workers and customers. The company remains steadfastly committed to this objective while ensuring that the substantial benefits from using beryllium products remain available to society.

Brush Wellman Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Brush Engineered Materials Inc. (NYSE:BW). Brush Engineered Materials Inc. is headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio. The Company, through its wholly-owned subsidiaries, supplies worldwide markets with beryllium products, alloy products, electronic products, precious metal products, and engineered material systems.