Missoula, Mont. (AP) W.R. Grace is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to review pretrial issues in the government's asbestos case against it.

The company filed a petition this week asking the high court to evaluate a decision by a federal appeals court. The decision involves the type of asbestos found at the company's Libby vermiculite mine, which closed in 1990.

Grace attorneys say that when the company operated the mine, minerals in the asbestos found there weren't on the list of substances covered by the Clean Air Act. They say the company therefore can't be prosecuted for them under the act.

U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy of Missoula agreed, but was overturned by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Grace is now asking the Supreme Court to reverse the 9th Circuit's decision. The government has 30 days to file a response.

A 2005 indictment charged Grace and some of its former managers with conspiring to hide health risks associated with the Libby mine. Grace has denied any criminal wrongdoing.

Information from: KPAX-TV, http://www.kpax.com (Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) APNP 04-16-08 1743CDT | save this article / add to your favorites list