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Mesothelioma Case in NJ Appeals Court

Mesothelioma lawyers in New Jersey are resting after the conclusion of a long asbestos lawsuit which has finally resulted in a $7 million award to a woman who was exposed to asbestos while washing her husbands clothes. The decision comes against Exxon Mobile Corporation.

The award is the latest in a string of secondary-exposure lawsuits in which asbestos manufacturers and companies who used the deadly substance are being held accountable for people who develop mesothelioma as a result, even if they did not work directly with the substance.

Mesothelioma is a cancerous disease that attacks the lining of the bodys organs. It has been linked to asbestos exposure, and has a relatively long latency period of 15 years or more. At the present time there is no known cure.

61 year old Bonnie Anderson worked at an Exxon refinery from 1974 to 1986 as an electrician, but admitted that she probably was not exposed to asbestos in her position. Her husband John, however, worked at the same plant as a pipefitter, where he constantly came in contact with asbestos insulation which was used to cover pipes at the facility. Bonnie Anderson washed his work clothes at their home.

In her original lawsuit, Anderson was awarded $500,000 by a jury for compensation. After she challenged the award the judge allowed a new damages portion of the trial to take place, at which she was awarded $7 million by a jury. Her husband was also awarded $500,000.

Exxon appealed the award, arguing that the trial judge erred in allowing the new damages trial to take place. The three judges on the appellate panel, however, disagreed and upheld the verdict.

Girl Dies at 18 from Mesothelioma

An 18 year old Great Britain girl who became an inspiration to many after she developed mesothelioma at an early age sadly passed away last week. Aside from the grief of those supporting her fight against the disease, her death at such a young age raises new questions about the perceived latency period of diseases from asbestos exposure.

Sophie Ellis was only 13 years old when doctors first diagnosed her with mesothelioma. Experts are still not sure how she contracted the condition, which has been shown to be caused by exposure to asbestos. Because of the environments that usually bring victims in contact with the substance, Mesothelioma usually affects people in their 40s or older who have worked in certain high risk industries.

Doctors are now seeing more cases develop from secondary exposure, such as contact with clothes from family members who work near asbestos. Some believe this could have been a cause of Ellis disease. At the time she was diagnosed, she was given only months to live. Instead, she bravely fought the terminal disease for 5 years.

Ellis kept up her dream of becoming a musician or actress, even after having to undergo surgery to remove a lung and losing the use of her legs. She eventually was forced to stop college studies due to her treatment.

What baffles experts is that mesothelioma usually takes 15 to 40 years to develop. However, Ellis case is a rare exception. In Great Britain, which has the highest mesothelioma death rate in the world, only 9 people under the age of nineteen have died from the disease in the past 40 years.

New Mass Tort Drug Accutane

Accutane injury lawyers representing Hollywood actor James Marshall will begin their Accutane lawsuit this week in New Jersey over allegations that the drug caused the actor bowel conditions such as Inflammatory Bowel Disease that led to him having surgery to remove his colon. More info is about Accutane is available.

Marshall is best known for his role as Private First Class Louden Downey in the 1992 hit A Few Good Men. He also starred in the movie Gladiator. Accutane, which was sold by Roche Pharmaceuticals until June of 2009 has been linked to several bowel conditions including Inflammatory Bowel Disease, Ulcerative Colitis and Crohns Disease. In the most sever of these afflictions patients may have to have parts of their bowels removed.

The lawsuit filed by the 43 year old actor alleges that the eventual surgery he had to undergo as a result of the severe side effects from Accutane ruined a successful acting career. Several industry insiders and fellow actors such as Martin Sheen, Brian Dennehy and Rob Reiner are expected to testify to that effect during the trial.

More than 1,000 Accutane lawsuits have been filed so far against Roche alleging that the drug manufacturer did not properly warn patients of the risks of severe bowel disease side effects associated with the drug. Although only 7 of the cases have reached a jury decision, all of those have resulted in verdicts against Roche totaling approximately $56 million.

It is expected that even more people suffering from conditions like Inflammatory Bowel Disease, Ulcerative Colitis and Crohns Disease who took Accutane but do not know of the connection will learn about their legal rights because of this high profile case.

Asbestos Still Being Used in Other Countries

Despite the mounting evidence that exposure to asbestos can lead to the deadly disease mesothelioma and the continuing onslaught of litigation against companies who continued to produce the material or use it in their products after they knew it was harmful, companies are still mining asbestos. More shocking is that they are also pushing it on other countries with lobbyists and fraudulent public relation campaigns.

A nine month investigation found that an international conglomerate of asbestos producers and lobbyist groups has spent almost $100 million since the 1980s in order to keep the substance legal and in use in developing countries. Although asbestos has claimed the lives of millions of workers and is prohibited or highly regulated in 52 countries, the group promoted the sale of approximately 2.2 million tons of it last year.

The foundation for the group is the Chrysotile Institute in Montreal, with a network of public and private backers, companies, scientists and friendly governments that stretches from India to Russia to Mexico. They spread the message that asbestos can be used safely under "controlled" conditions. Experts from health organizations around the world strongly disagree. They argue that the message assumes that employers will provide proper dust controls, ventilation and protective equipment for workers. However, such measures are uncommon in the developing world.

With massive lobbying efforts from Canada, the largest producer of asbestos, they have been able to stop legislation and treaties requiring warning labels on asbestos shipped to many countries. As a result, use of the substance is increasing rapidly in countries like China and India. The World Health Organization estimates 120 million workers come in contact with the substance every day.

Experts are warning of health epidemics in the future for these countries. Diseases such as lung cancer, asbestosis and mesothelioma could claim hundreds of millions of lives in decades to come.

Asbestos Conspiracy Lawsuit

Asbestos attorneys representing two men in their mesothelioma lawsuit were disappointed when the cases resulted in mistrials last week. The decision means the lawsuits will have to go back for a fresh trial.

As the amount of people who had direct asbestos exposure dwindles due to their death from mesothelioma, more and more cases are arising from those who experienced indirect exposure to the deadly substance. These include family members who contacted the material from clothes, laundry or airborne infection.

These cases involved two men who were claiming that the defendant companies conspired for decades to hide the dangers of asbestos. One of the men spent his career working as a fireman in Springfield, IL, where he came into contact with asbestos numerous times. The other worked as a teacher in Bloomington, IL. He was also subjected to exposure since asbestos was regularly used to insulate older buildings.

Both men eventually developed mesothelioma, which is a terminal disease affecting the lining of the bodys organs. The disease has an extended latency period of several decades, therefore many people dont know they have it until it is advanced.

The trial, which combined the two lawsuits, went on for 6 weeks until the jury began deliberations. After 3 days they declared that they were unable to come to a unanimous decision. The judge announced a mistrial on July 16.

Oregon School Fined for Asbestos

The improper use or removal of asbestos often leads to a mesothelioma lawsuit as people develop the deadly disease decades after they are exposed. Mesothelioma lawyers are working to protect our future generations from asbestos as much as they are fighting for past generations who have already fallen victim to the disease.

State environmental departments are also working to defend our children from the deadly effects of asbestos. Oregons Department of Environmental Quality recently fined one of the states school districts $33,000 for violations of asbestos regulations during a renovation.

The fine centered around asbestos removal at Metolius Elementary School in the summer of 2009. While contractors removed approximately 260 square feet of floor tiles that contained asbestos, the Department found that they likely released deadly asbestos fibers into the air. Most troubling is the fact that asbestos is most dangerous when released into the air and that the project took place while students were attending summer school.

Exposure to asbestos has been shown to cause the deadly disease mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is a cancer that attacks the linings of the bodys organs. Because of its extended latency period, around 20 years or more, it goes undetected for decades. This makes children especially vulnerable to developing the disease during their prime years.

Asbestos removal violations such as this are shockingly common, as the removal process is tedious and expensive. Workers must be trained in proper methods, sufficiently protected with the right clothing, and vigilant at adhering to removal standards. Cutting corners to save time and money is often a problem.

While asbestos regulations have been enacted by all states, violations are common. Asbestos removal work can be expensive, and difficult. It requires contractors and property owners to be vigilant, testing for the material and making sure that any asbestos removed or handled is done so properly. Workers and others nearby also need to be properly protected by special clothing or sufficient warnings.

New Missouri Asbestos Lawsuits

Mesothelioma attorneys in Missouri representing three different families filed new lawsuits last week alleging their clients were the victims of negligent asbestos exposure. The suits were the 15th, 16th and 17th filed this year alone in the heavily contested St. Clair County courts.

The first of the three asbestos lawsuits was filed by Donna Stinson alleging that her husbands recent death from lung cancer was caused by the negligence of 98 different companies. Gerald Stinson worked his entire career as a boilermaker from 1963 until 2001, during which time he was repeatedly exposed to products and materials containing asbestos. Ms. Stinson charges that the companies should have known of the harmful effects of asbestos, but did nothing to protect users of their products. Her suit seeks damages for disability, death, medical costs and pain and suffering.

In the second asbestos lawsuit, Edward Sabbatini claims that the death of his wife Muriel Louise from lung cancer was due to her indirect exposure to asbestos from her former husband. He worked as a machinist, railroad brakeman and boiler operator from 1949 until 1985.

In the final complaint filed by his family, they allege that Bernard Miller contracted mesothelioma from working with asbestos-laden materials between 1971 and 1991 while he worked as a boiler operator, naval machinist mate and maintenance mechanic.

None of the defendants in the lawsuits have issued a comment in response.

Record Number of Asbestos Cases in Illinois

According to a Circuit Court Judge in Madison County, Illinois, Asbestos and Mesothelioma attorneys who represent people affected by the deadly substance and disease are filing lawsuits there at a record rate.

According to court records, 42 lawsuits relating to asbestos exposure have been filed in Madison County, Illinois Circuit Court so far this year. That is more than triple the 13 cases filed during the same time period last year.

Mesothelioma is a rare and terminal disease that attacks the lining of the bodys organs, namely the chest, lungs and abdomen. It has been linked to exposure to asbestos but can take 20 years or more to manifest. Some believe this is the reason why the number of lawsuits is only now increasing.

According to Circuit Judge Daniel Stack, who handles asbestos cases for the County, a majority of the new cases involve secondary exposure, which occurs when someone like a family member of a worker comes into indirect contact with asbestos.

Experts believe the number of asbestos lawsuits will peak sometime in the next decade or so, then slowly decrease. The substance has been banned in the United States for decades, but is still used in some other countries.

Utah Asbestos Victim Wins Largest Suit

Mesothelioma lawyers representing a Utah woman who contracted the deadly disease after years of asbestos exposure this week secured an award of $5.2 million for their client. The award for Vickie Warren, who is terminally ill from mesothelioma, was handed down by a Salt Lake City jury and is believed to be the largest ever asbestos verdict in the state.

Growing up in Provo, Utah, Warren often helped her father with home construction projects, where she helped clean up asbestos-laden joint compounds that her father used for wall repairs. Neither knew at the time that the materials they were handling were deadly. Those compounds were traced back to three companies, Georgia-Pacific LLP; Hamilton Materials, Inc.; and Union Carbide.

Warren was diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2007. The terminal disease attacks the lining of the bodys internal organs and has no cure. Development of mesothelioma has been linked to exposure to asbestos, although the disease has an extremely long latency period of 20 years or more.

After a trial that lasted five and a half weeks, the jury decided that Georgia-Pacific and Hamilton Materials had produced defectively designed joint compounds made of asbestos-fiber products produced by Union Carbide.

Warren, who is very ill at present, was awarded approximately $1.4 million in economic damages and more than $3.7 million in noneconomic damages. Mesothelioma lawyers in other states often secure awards of much higher amounts to compensate their clients for pain, suffering, loss of enjoyment of life and medical expenses.

Asbestos Victim Awarded Damages

Mesothelioma lawyers representing a victim of asbestos exposure and his wife were pleased to aid their clients last week in receiving a jury award of more than $4.5 million. The victory is bittersweet, however, as the terminal disease is likely to claim the victims life in the near future.

John Koeberle and his wife have been married for 57 years. He worked in maintenance for the Navy from 1948 until 1957, during which time he was repeatedly exposed to asbestos while scraping away old gaskets on diesel engines, valves and pumps. He was diagnosed with malignant plural mesothelioma, a terminal disease with no cure, in April 2009.

In the two-part trial, Koeberles attorneys first had to prove that his mesothelioma was caused by asbestos exposure. Since his doctors recommended against taking hard tissue samples, the usual method, he had to prove he had mesothelioma with cytological studies of fluids taken from his chest cavity.

Mr. Koeberle also testified about his duties while in the Navy, which he described as "very dusty" with asbestos material he used to cut into gaskets. He also recalled the name of the defendant, John Crane Inc., as a manufacturer of the material based on his recollection of the name on the boxes he used while working.

After determining that exposure to asbestos contributed to his mesothelioma, a jury awarded Mr. Koeberle $3 million for his damages, and awarded his wife $1.5 million for loss of consortium.

Tragically, Mr. Koeberle was too weak from his disease to be present when the final decision was announced on June 10.