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Asbestos Litigation

Each asbestos case is unique, but the general process for defending claims involving asbestos is the same. Your lawyer will need to take a deposition of the plaintiff.

The source of asbestos exposure can be numerous, not just one employer or company. This is why asbestos cases typically involve multiple defendants.

Determine the source of exposure

To make an asbestos claim, it is important to identify asbestos exposure. Often, the attorneys of victims can work with medical records to determine the source of asbestos. This could help victims receive compensation from the companies responsible for their asbestos exposure.

Mesothelioma victims and their families are entitled to compensation to cover expensive mesothelioma treatment. Compensation can help families cope emotionally when a mesothelioma diagnosis is announced.

Asbestos lawsuits are complicated legal proceedings, and the victims need to understand their rights and the way in which the process operates. Attorneys are able to handle many aspects of a case, they are expected to participate in the case. This includes responding to discovery requests and attending depositions.

Remember that the statutes are limited in New York, and you should consult an asbestos attorney immediately if you are able to. If you do not file your claim within the specified time frame you could be denied on financial compensation.

In some cases, victims have been exposed to asbestos-containing products produced by several companies. In these cases, victims lawyers may be required to identify the companies that made each product, in addition to the employers or contractors who supplied the asbestos-containing products.

Asbestos litigation is the longest-running mass tort in American history. It has been the cause of hundreds of bankruptcy filings from asbestos producers. Many of these companies have established trust funds to compensate asbestos victims. However, asbestos defendants continue to dispute evidence linking asbestos exposure and mesothelioma, lung cancer, or other respiratory illnesses. This is despite research by doctors like Dr. Irving J. Selikoff, Dr. Jacob Churg, and Dr. E. Cuyler Hammond among others.

Developing a Database

A case involving mesothelioma or other asbestos-related illnesses is distinct from a typical personal injury lawsuit. In many cases asbestos litigation, there are many of the same defendants (companies that are being sued), many of the same law firms representing plaintiffs, as well as many of the same expert witnesses.

To build a strong asbestos defense, attorneys need to be able to access a large database that will help them identify potential exposure sources. This includes examining the job site, talking to coworkers and obtaining documents from suppliers and employers. This involves locating and interviewing nurses or doctors who may be able to be able to testify about asbestos attorney exposure.

This type of database is difficult to create, particularly if the data has been lost over time. When this occurs, it can require the reconstruction of an entire claims database and insurance program, often from multiple sources like loss runs and claim files, internal systems and defense counsel records. This can take years, or decades, to complete.

asbestos lawsuit lawyers must also access to a program that allows them to identify potential defendants and locate potential exposure sites. The information that is available to attorneys can save both valuable time and money.

Following the massive bankruptcies of asbestos producers the plaintiffs' lawyers were seeking new defendants to list in their lawsuits. In the wake of this, asbestos cases in West Virginia are now defined by triannual consolidated trials groups where volume is king and lawsuits naming less than 100 defendants is rare.

Identifying the Defendants

The actual basis of asbestos cases is usually established through discovery. Asbestos firms have denied for many years that their products could cause harm, but once the lawsuits began, documents from the company exposed evidence of the dangers. These documents can aid plaintiffs establish that certain defendants products were responsible for their injuries. To win a case the plaintiff must show that the defendant's product was used at his workplace, that the worker was exposed to it through inhalation of dust and that exposure to the dust was a major reason for his injuries.

Asbestos cases often involve several defendants. The method of identifying them differs from a personal injury case. The key is to develop an information database that links employers, locations and products by interviewing co-workers and relatives as well as reviewing work orders and invoices, obtaining documents from suppliers and vendors, and analyzing samples from the plaintiff's home and work websites. It can also help to identify defendants if one knows the type of asbestos, like amosite or chrysotile.

The defendants must take the time to review these facts and pinpoint the possible sources of exposure. This could involve a thorough review of more than forty years of a person's life through Social Security, union, tax and other documents. Due to the long latency of asbestos-related injuries, it can be difficult and expensive to establish an accurate database.

Due to the high volume of asbestos cases and limited resources of many defendants in federal courts, a lot of asbestos cases will be referred to a multi-district lawsuit (MDL). This gives defendants to share resources and avoid duplication of discovery.

Case Development

Asbestos lawsuits involve extensive research and the review of numerous documents. This can be particularly challenging because exposure to asbestos typically was a long time before the victim became sick. To determine the source of the asbestos exposure, lawyers must conduct an interview and go through thousands of pages of documents like union and employment records, tax files and social security records, medical and lab reports.

The lawyers representing the plaintiffs must also do everything they can to locate other defendants. In some cases, there can be up to 40 defendants. To achieve this, they must examine the supply chain to investigate companies that could have a connection with asbestos but who are not named in the lawsuit.

This process can be very long, particularly if the claimant has mesothelioma, or other serious illnesses. In addition, it is often difficult to find witnesses and obtain physical evidence.

An attorney for mesothelioma will try to determine the identity of all defendants and their connections to the victim's exposure. This can require a thorough examination of over 40 years of the victim's history through interviews as well as a review of their social security, union, labor and tax records.

A successful asbestos litigation strategy depends on years of experience in a complex area of law. At McGivney, Kluger, Clark & Intoccia We have been at the forefront of asbestos litigation since our founding at the beginning of 1994. We are also national leaders in defending companies involved in industry-wide, multi-jurisdictional litigation. We are the National Coordinating Counsel and liaison counsel, representing and representing the interests of a variety of different defendants including product manufacturers distributors, suppliers, and contractors. We have a wealth of experience creating and establishing key defenses as well as expert witness testimony and jurisdictional Case Management Orders.

Preparing for trial

Lawyers must carefully prepare their cases prior to trial to ensure that their clients' arguments and evidence are the strongest they can be. This involves reviewing medical records, making sure that all witnesses are prepared and identifying exhibits to be used in the trial. This process can take several years in the case of complex cases.

Before developing mesothelioma, many asbestos patients develop a lesser disease like asbestosis, the pleural plaque or pleural fibrosis. Asbestosis symptoms include tightening of the lungs which could cause breathing problems, coughing, chest pain and so on.

Asbestos victims' attorneys must also scrutinize the evidence to determine any potential defendants that could be held liable for the asbestos-related injuries. This includes interviewing coworkers or family members, asbestos manufacturers, asbestos abatement employees and obtaining various documents.

After identifying a potential defendant, an attorney must determine the responsibility of the defendant. The defendants could be individuals, corporations or governmental agencies. They must be held accountable for their negligent actions.

Many legislative solutions to solve asbestos litigation have been proposed in Congress. However, these initiatives have failed due to a number of complicated political motives. asbestos lawyer victims and their lawyers remain committed to holding negligent asbestos companies accountable for their actions.

Waters Kraus & Paul is a law firm that has handled hundreds of cases in New York State and across the country. Our lawyers have held insurance companies, and other responsible parties accountable for their involvement in the asbestos exposure. In Upstate New York asbestos litigation is centralized into five judicial districts, where cases are assigned by judges who have expertise in asbestos matters.

The Asbestos Litigation Group welcomes all AAJ members, including regular, life, sustainer, and President's Club members. Members of the Asbestos Litigation Group network and discuss legal issues strategies, and also at winter and annual conventions.