New Hampshire Law Blog

In two separate lead paint cases in Laconia, the occupants have won their cases.  In the first, a child was poisoned by the  lead paint while living in the home. 

The child, who was three years old when she moved to Cottage Street, was diagnosed two years later with lead levels in her blood of 25 parts-per-billion – more than twice the 10 parts-per-billion level determined by the U.S. Center for Disease Control as lead poisoning.

The case against Mark Mirski, doing business as Mirski Revocable Trust was settled for $118,000 after an eight year battle.  A Merrimack County Court agreed that the child had suffered cognitive injuries as a result of the poisoning.   The family had said that there was chipping and peeling paint but they had never been warned of the danger.  State law requires that all renters be warned of the presence of lead paint.

In the second case Steven and Valerie Johnston were given triple damages in their lawsuit against the real estate agent who sold them the property in 2006 without disclosing that there was lead paint present.  They discovered the presence of the lead paint when their children had elevated lead levels in their blood.

According to U.S. District Court, District of New Hampshire, Steven and Valerie Johnston of 37 Fair St. need $102,000 to remove the lead paint from their property and argued successfully that Pauline Eastman of Belmont should have known the federal statutes regarding the full disclosure of lead paint.  Federal District Judge Joseph N. Laplante ordered a lien assessment against Eastman of $306,000 – an increase of $56,000 from the $250,000 the Johnstons originally requested.

Public health coordinator for the Lakes Region Partnership for Public Health, Susan Laverack, has indicated that Laconia is one of the hot spots for lead poisoning in New Hampshire.  The real issue is having funds available for testing children and abatement of the lead paint presence.  “One issue in Laconia is that people say [their apartment] is the only place they can afford to rent,” she said, pointing out that there is very little affordable rental property in the city.