In Chavers v. Gatke Corp. (2003) 107 Cal.App.4th 606, an auto mechanic sought damages for mesothelioma caused by inhalation of asbestos fibers in brake shoes. ( Chavers, supra, 107 Cal.App.4th at p. 609.) He conceded he could not prove that he had ever used or worked with brake shoes manufactured by defendant brake shoe manufacturer Gatke Corporation. ( Id. at p. 610.) Nevertheless, he argued that Gatke Corporation should be liable because it was one of numerous manufacturers of asbestos-containing products who had contributed in the 1930's to financing a private research laboratory to study the health effects of asbestos on people who worked on or with it. (Ibid.) The laboratory eventually reported to the contributing manufacturers that asbestos exposure could be seriously harmful, but this information was not made public for many years. ( Id. at p. 610.) Chavers held, as a matter of law, that the trial court did not err in refusing to instruct on such a participation theory. ( Chavers, supra, 107 Cal.App.4th at p. 609.) It relied in large part on Sindell v. Abbott Laboratories (1980) 26 Cal.3d 588, which rejected a "concert of action" theory of liability for producers of the synthetic hormone DES when the plaintiff could not identify the manufacturer of the specific DES that caused her injury. ( Chavers, supra, at pp. 616-617.) "Applying a concert of action theory of collective liability in such industrywide circumstances 'would expand the concert of action doctrine far beyond its intended scope and would render virtually any manufacturer liable for the defective products of an entire industry, even if it could be demonstrated that the product which caused the injury was not made by the defendant.'" ( Id. at p. 617, quoting Sindell, supra, 26 Cal.3d at p. 605.)