Asbestos Law and Mesothelioma Litigation Information
Currently more than 200,000 asbestos litigation cases are in court and 50,000 new asbestos lawsuits are expected to be filed each year. Asbestos products have not been used in construction for many years, however experienced mesothelioma lawyers understand that this is a disease that can quietly develop over decades. A worker might have been exposed to asbestos as long as thirty or forty years ago only to be recently diagnosed with mesothelioma. And by this time it is usually too late. The legal precident has been set and the injured parties have recieved settlements to help thier families:
Bell v. Dresser Industries Incorporated
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In 2001 a group of Alabama plaintiffs claimed that a former employer allowed them to be exposed to dangerous levels of asbestos. The five men, laborers or millwrights, said they contracted asbestosis when exposed to the asbestos in the spray products mixed by U.S. Pipe, their Alabama employer. They also alleged that Dresser Industries, an asbestos manufacturer that sold asbestos byproducts, had known for many years that asbestos was a carcinogen yet failed to warn of the danger. The equipment they used at U.S. Pipe was from Dresser Industries and the plaintiffs claimed that they were defective products with inadequate warnings. The defendants, Dresser Industries, contested that the men were never exposed to their products and that the products in question were never sold to U.S. Pipe.
However, the exposure was fatal: all five of the men were diagnosed with asbestosis. Two also had lung cancer and two others had colon cancer. The two with colon cancer died of their conditions and their widows presented claims of loss of consortium and household services. The jury in an 11-1 vote awarded the plaintiffs $130 million after finding negligence, defective products and inadequate warnings as to each defendant. The surviving employees each received $4 million in the past and $2 million in future damages. The estates of the deceased were each rewarded $4 million and the two widows were each awarded $2 million.
The Bell v. Dresser Industries Inc. case was one of the largest asbestos verdicts in the United States
Despite a large and growing number of asbestos lawsuits and cases being filed with mesothelioma lawyers across the nation, there are relatively few mesothelioma lawsuits filed when compared to this number. No more than about 2,500 mesothelioma lawsuits are filed each year. In fact, mesothelioma law and settlements comprise a fraction of the litigation surrounding asbestos law. While other asbestos related diseases like asbestosis and other more minor forms of asbestos injury could merit an asbestos settlement, the most severe form of asbestos injury is mesothelioma. It is also the most rare form of asbestos injury.
If you or someone you know is suffering or has died from mesothelioma or asbestosis, you can evaluate your options with any qualified legal professional. It doesn’t hurt to call or check them out online.
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