Filing an Asbestos Lawsuit in California
Bay Area Advice to File Asbestos Claim
At a minimum, what is needed to file an asbestos lawsuit or claim?
At a minimum, in order to have a potential claim, an individual needs to have two things: 1) Exposure to asbestos; and 2) diagnosis of an asbestos-related disease. Most of us have been exposed to asbestos in our lifetime whether we were exposed in schools, the workplace, family homes, military sites or government sites. However, (and thankfully), not everyone who is exposed to asbestos gets sick or develops an asbestos disease. The most serious asbestos disease is mesothelioma. An individual diagnosed with mesothelioma has the strongest claim since the only known cause of mesothelioma is exposure to asbestos. Those diagnosed with lung cancer or asbestosis MAY have a claim against the asbestos industry, but bankruptcies of companies, various state laws, other health ailments and other factors will play into the determination. Many asbestos lawyers only file mesothelioma claims.
What if I do not know where I was exposed to asbestos?
Many people do not know the variety of ways one could be exposed to asbestos. Some are exposed to asbestos directly by products they use in the workplace. Others work with or around others handling asbestos products. Still others worked as auto mechanics (brakes/clutch disks had asbestos) and were exposed. Others never worked or handled asbestos but did the laundry of their spouse who handled asbestos. There are so many different ways one could be exposed to asbestos. Even if you do not know how you were exposed, our experts can help you make the determination.
I have excessive coughing and worked with asbestos—am I eligible for compensation?
Many things can cause coughing including various infections, smoking cigarettes, exposure to fumes and chemicals. Specific medical tests can help determine if medical problems are asbestos related (see below). Individuals who call our office with these symptoms are requested to see a local pulmonary specialist to help us determine if the problems are asbestos related.
What test should I take to determine if my breathing problems are asbestos-related?
At a minimum, BOTH a chest x-ray and a pulmonary function test are needed to determine if problems are asbestos related. Just a chest x-ray is typically not enough. In addition, a high resolution CT scan can help determine if a problem is asbestos-related. And of course, if a problem is more serious, a needle or surgical biopsy can determine if a disease is cancerous.
What if I was exposed to asbestos only in the 1940's or 1950's?
Asbestos injuries can take between 15 and 60 years to develop after someone is exposed to asbestos. How the disease develops in each person can vary. Some are exposed to asbestos for a short time (say in the 1940's) and get sick and some work with asbestos for their entire lives and never show any signs of disease. My office has represented clients exposed to asbestos in the 1930's through the 1980's.
JUST A FEW FACTS OVER THE DECADES…
- In 1931, a medical screening financed in part by Met Life (who insured a number of major asbestos companies) found that nearly 25% (47 of 192) of asbestos workers had asbestosis, a slowly progressive lung disease that can be fatal.
- In 1932, Travelers Insurance (who also insured asbestos companies) rates asbestos exposure as a significant enough hazard that it instructed its agents to decline to sell life insurance to asbestos workers after the age of 56.
- In 1935, Met Life officials prepared a federal government study that found 64 U.S. workers with asbestosis. However, at the suggestion of asbestos manufacturers, the researchers changed the conclusion of the study to minimize the disease's gravity.
- By the late 1930's, asbestos manufacturers and their insurance companies knew that asbestos was killing workers at alarming rates. In 1934, Aetna Insurance company published the Attorney's Textbook of Medicine, which devoted a full chapter to asbestos exposure, noting that asbestosis was "incurable and usually results in total permanent disability followed by death…." But they never told the public…
- In the 1940's a top New York laboratory—while testing mice for asbestosis—found a much more deadly result. In one study, 9 of 11 asbestos-exposed mice were found to have a more deadly disease—lung cancer. Through the strong effects of a Met Life official who oversaw the Lab, the findings and similar results were concealed.
- In 1952, a British health official presented the data to a conference at the same New York lab that lined asbestos to lung cancer. U.S. insurance companies, asbestos manufacturers and government officials were at the conference. Unlike the six prior conferences at this New York lab, the transcript of this conference was not published.
- In a 1958 memo, the National Gypsum Company (a major asbestos products manufacturer) states: "We know that you will never lose sight of the fact that perhaps the greatest hazard in your plant is with men handling asbestos. Because just as certain as death and taxes is the fact that if you inhale asbestos dust you get asbestosis." Warnings did not appear for decades…
- In 1973, Union Carbide's own medical department advised the company to stop belittling the dangers of asbestos exposure in marketing literature for asbestos products, noting several "misleading" and "half truth" statements in the company's literature. Company doctors referenced government studies indicating asbestos exposures "as short as one day" had produced lung disease, contrary to the company's assertion that "massive long term exposure to asbestos" was required to produce asbestos diseases. To this day, Union Carbide still disputes that their asbestos fibers cause mesothelioma…
Filing an Asbestos Lawsuit in California
Bay Area Advice to File Asbestos Claim
At a minimum, what is needed to file an asbestos lawsuit or claim?
At a minimum, in order to have a potential claim, an individual needs to have two things: 1) Exposure to asbestos; and 2) diagnosis of an asbestos-related disease. Most of us have been exposed to asbestos in our lifetime whether we were exposed in schools, the workplace, family homes, military sites or government sites. However, (and thankfully), not everyone who is exposed to asbestos gets sick or develops an asbestos disease. The most serious asbestos disease is mesothelioma. An individual diagnosed with mesothelioma has the strongest claim since the only known cause of mesothelioma is exposure to asbestos. Those diagnosed with lung cancer or asbestosis MAY have a claim against the asbestos industry, but bankruptcies of companies, various state laws, other health ailments and other factors will play into the determination. Many asbestos lawyers only file mesothelioma claims.
What if I do not know where I was exposed to asbestos?
Many people do not know the variety of ways one could be exposed to asbestos. Some are exposed to asbestos directly by products they use in the workplace. Others work with or around others handling asbestos products. Still others worked as auto mechanics (brakes/clutch disks had asbestos) and were exposed. Others never worked or handled asbestos but did the laundry of their spouse who handled asbestos. There are so many different ways one could be exposed to asbestos. Even if you do not know how you were exposed, our experts can help you make the determination.
I have excessive coughing and worked with asbestos—am I eligible for compensation?
Many things can cause coughing including various infections, smoking cigarettes, exposure to fumes and chemicals. Specific medical tests can help determine if medical problems are asbestos related (see below). Individuals who call our office with these symptoms are requested to see a local pulmonary specialist to help us determine if the problems are asbestos related.
What test should I take to determine if my breathing problems are asbestos-related?
At a minimum, BOTH a chest x-ray and a pulmonary function test are needed to determine if problems are asbestos related. Just a chest x-ray is typically not enough. In addition, a high resolution CT scan can help determine if a problem is asbestos-related. And of course, if a problem is more serious, a needle or surgical biopsy can determine if a disease is cancerous.
What if I was exposed to asbestos only in the 1940's or 1950's?
Asbestos injuries can take between 15 and 60 years to develop after someone is exposed to asbestos. How the disease develops in each person can vary. Some are exposed to asbestos for a short time (say in the 1940's) and get sick and some work with asbestos for their entire lives and never show any signs of disease. My office has represented clients exposed to asbestos in the 1930's through the 1980's.
JUST A FEW FACTS OVER THE DECADES…
- In 1931, a medical screening financed in part by Met Life (who insured a number of major asbestos companies) found that nearly 25% (47 of 192) of asbestos workers had asbestosis, a slowly progressive lung disease that can be fatal.
- In 1932, Travelers Insurance (who also insured asbestos companies) rates asbestos exposure as a significant enough hazard that it instructed its agents to decline to sell life insurance to asbestos workers after the age of 56.
- In 1935, Met Life officials prepared a federal government study that found 64 U.S. workers with asbestosis. However, at the suggestion of asbestos manufacturers, the researchers changed the conclusion of the study to minimize the disease's gravity.
- By the late 1930's, asbestos manufacturers and their insurance companies knew that asbestos was killing workers at alarming rates. In 1934, Aetna Insurance company published the Attorney's Textbook of Medicine, which devoted a full chapter to asbestos exposure, noting that asbestosis was "incurable and usually results in total permanent disability followed by death…." But they never told the public…
- In the 1940's a top New York laboratory—while testing mice for asbestosis—found a much more deadly result. In one study, 9 of 11 asbestos-exposed mice were found to have a more deadly disease—lung cancer. Through the strong effects of a Met Life official who oversaw the Lab, the findings and similar results were concealed.
- In 1952, a British health official presented the data to a conference at the same New York lab that lined asbestos to lung cancer. U.S. insurance companies, asbestos manufacturers and government officials were at the conference. Unlike the six prior conferences at this New York lab, the transcript of this conference was not published.
- In a 1958 memo, the National Gypsum Company (a major asbestos products manufacturer) states: "We know that you will never lose sight of the fact that perhaps the greatest hazard in your plant is with men handling asbestos. Because just as certain as death and taxes is the fact that if you inhale asbestos dust you get asbestosis." Warnings did not appear for decades…
- In 1973, Union Carbide's own medical department advised the company to stop belittling the dangers of asbestos exposure in marketing literature for asbestos products, noting several "misleading" and "half truth" statements in the company's literature. Company doctors referenced government studies indicating asbestos exposures "as short as one day" had produced lung disease, contrary to the company's assertion that "massive long term exposure to asbestos" was required to produce asbestos diseases. To this day, Union Carbide still disputes that their asbestos fibers cause mesothelioma…
Contact the Asbestos Legal Center Today. We Can Help.
To learn more about how we can help you with your case, please contact us today! Complimentary Legal Evaluation.
Millions in Compensation
Asbestos was once widely used, and many employers and product manufacturers failed to provide adequate warnings regarding the risks of asbestos exposure. As a result of such negligence, mesothelioma victims can file a lawsuit to potentially obtain millions in compensation for their illness. The only known cause of mesothelioma is exposure to asbestos.
