Asbestos Lawsuit History
Lawyers such as Stanley Levy have helped many asbestos victims. Patients suffering from mesothelioma or other asbestos-related diseases can sue companies that mined, manufactured, or used asbestos and asbestos-containing products.
Nellie Kershaw filed her first asbestos lawsuit. She developed health issues while working in an asbestos fiber manufacturing plant in England. She passed away at the age of 33 of fibrosis in the lungs caused by asbestos exposure.
The First Cases
Asbestos, a hazardous mineral, has infected and killed thousands of people over the years. Asbestos claims are filed for a variety reasons, but the majority involve people who have been exposed to asbestos in their work. This includes workers at factories that made asbestos-related products as well as those who worked on the construction of structures that contain asbestos, and even those who were exposed to asbestos secondhand from contaminated household products like talcum powder.
Exposure to asbestos can trigger many different illnesses that include lung cancer, mesothelioma and other respiratory ailments. While some of these ailments are serious and may be fatal, a lot of people have been able to obtain compensation for their injuries. Most countries have laws requiring companies that create dangerous substances warn anyone who may be injured.
The first asbestos lawsuit, filed in 1929, was filed by a woman with the name of Anna Pirskowski. She was suffering from a range of ailments, including shortness of breath and thickening of the fingertip tissue, which is known as clubbing. She was awarded an amount of $75,000 as a settlement, which is believed to be the first class action lawsuit in connection with asbestos.
In the years that followed there were a lot of asbestos lawsuits were filed. Some of the cases grew quite large, and a lot of attorneys began to specialise in asbestos litigation. This meant that they only dealt with the most serious cases. One firm that was involved in this was Kazan Law, which in the late 1980s started to concentrate on bringing cases on behalf of people who had mesothelioma.
Other lawsuits were won by those who been diagnosed with other asbestos-related diseases like asbestosis or plaques in the pleural cavity. The condition that caused them was similar to the mesothelioma, making it more straightforward to prove for lawyers. These claims also led to the revelation of secret documents that demonstrated the way asbestos producers tried to hide the dangers. In 1989, the Asbestos Ban & Phase Out Rule was issued.
The Second Cases
As the number of people diagnosed with asbestos-related diseases grew the number of victims and their families began bringing lawsuits. These lawsuits were filed against companies who mined asbestos, made asbestos-containing products or sold products containing asbestos. Mesothelioma sufferers also filed claims against companies that designed and constructed the structures in which they worked including shipyards, power plants and refineries. The connection between asbestos exposure and mesothelioma development is very strong.
In the early 1980s, the legal fights over asbestos lawsuits got more ferocious and courts began to rule on many aspects of the litigation process. For instance, a federal court ruled that only people suffering from a malignant asbestos-caused illness such as mesothelioma, or lung cancer are eligible to file lawsuits against the producers of asbestos-related products they employed. The ruling, dubbed Borel v. Fibreboard Paper Products Corp. was a major setback for asbestos plaintiffs.
At around the same time, Nellie Kershaw, a factory worker from Rochdale, England, filed what is considered the first legal claim that is well-known against asbestos companies. Kershaw was diagnosed with lung ailments due to her close contact with asbestos fibers, attempted to get the firm she worked for to pay for her medical treatments. The company, however, refused. Kershaw died in her 30s of fibrosis.
The second wave of asbestos cases focused on those who worked in construction sites and were exposed to various kinds of asbestos-containing building materials including fireproofing sprays drywall materials and textures. Asbestos lawyers also filed successful cases against companies who made equipment that utilized asbestos-containing materials, such as pumps and boilers.
During this time, a number of documents that were incriminating were found that revealed asbestos companies' involvement in fraud and conspiracy. These included the personal records of Johns-Manville president Sumner Simpson, as well as correspondence from the general counsel of another asbestos producer, Raybestos Manhattan. These documents revealed a shady alliance between these companies to hide asbestos' dangers and suppress efforts to warn the public.
The discovery of these, and other forms of corporate fraud and conspiracy in the mid- to late 1980s sparked a wave of class action settlements as well as other attempts to limit asbestos liability for asbestos companies. These attempts were met with massive opposition from plaintiffs' attorneys, their clients and the public.
The Third Cases
In the 1970s, asbestos companies were no longer able to cover up the dangers of asbestos-related diseases like mesothelioma from the public. This was due in large part to the fact that major national publications began paying attention to the connection between mesothelioma, asbestos, and other respiratory diseases, instead of small industry newsletters and medical journals. After asbestos-related serious illnesses were established and patients began filing lawsuits against asbestos-related companies.
In the 1970s, a court ruling that allowed plaintiffs to recourse to strict liability as a legal theory was among the major factors that led to an increase in asbestos lawsuits. Plaintiffs in asbestos lawsuits used to be required to prove that asbestos producers were negligent in exposing them. In the 1973 case Borel v. Fibreboard a judge ruled asbestos manufacturers accountable for any injuries that resulted from their products if they knew that their product was unsafe, but did not inform their employees or the general public about its dangers.
In the wake of this ruling, a number of asbestos producers have filed for bankruptcy, a process which allows a company to be reorganized in bankruptcy court, set money in trusts to cover asbestos claims, and then continue to operate. Johns-Manville is a notable example. It was the victim of numerous lawsuits brought by former workers who were diagnosed with asbestosis, mesothelioma, and lung cancer. Kazan Law set several cases against the manufacturer and was able obtain punitive damages verdicts against the company.
Asbestos litigation has grown in the past few years due to the rising number of asbestos-related illnesses. Asbestos cases are often complex, as the illnesses they cause can take years to manifest and are not always immediately obvious to those diagnosed.
In addition there have been cases where victims were forced to wait for years to receive compensation from insurance companies after their employers were found to be responsible. The US Supreme Court has dealt with numerous cases involving settlements for class actions that asbestos companies offered in an attempt to limit their liability, and has also looked into the issue of whether it is possible to hold individuals responsible for injuries caused by asbestos.
The Fourth Cases
Asbestos is a highly hazardous mineral that has sickened or killed hundreds of thousands of people over the decades. It's also a substance that was used extensively by companies who knew it was deadly, and yet they continued to make use of it in their manufacturing processes.
The legal system is able to handle these asbestos lawsuits and asbestos lawsuits, there are always new developments. One of the most important legal developments is a decision called Lubbe v. Cape Plc, which set the precedent for victims to sue multinational companies in their home jurisdictions for compensation.
These situations usually involve secondary asbestos exposure. Workers who handle asbestos at work may pass it on to their family members or spouses. The family members are affected by mesothelioma as well as other asbestos-related illnesses.
Many lawsuits are filed by the families of victims based on this kind of case. Asbestos lawyers can assist families file a claim against the companies that caused the asbestos-related injuries suffered by their loved ones.
Another big change in asbestos litigation is the rise of class action lawsuits. These asbestos lawsuits give victims the opportunity to pursue justice with the help of an attorney who is well-versed in the complicated legal issues that these cases raise.
Certain asbestos lawyers are against this type of litigation. In fact there have been a number of attempts to pass legislation restricting the use of asbestos-related class actions.
Pasadena asbestos lawyers in asbestos litigation is the filing of a suit by Massachusetts residents against four companies for how they handled asbestos removal and disposal. The lawsuit alleged the companies did not follow state laws by not properly disposing of asbestos and failing residents from toxic dust.
Asbestos litigation has been going on for decades and it's likely that it will continue to be throughout the years to come. The asbestos industry has tried to avoid responsibility by bringing up technical legal arguments and by trying to pass legislative solutions which would stop victims from seeking justice. However, it appears that a lot of victims and their lawyers are determined to see justice done.