Asbestos Lawsuit History
Many asbestos victims have received help from lawyers like Stanley Levy. People with asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma can sue companies that mined, manufactured or used asbestos.
Nellie Kershaw was the first to file an asbestos lawsuit. She suffered health issues while working in an asbestos fiber plant in England. She died at the age of 33 due to fibrosis of her lungs. It was caused by exposure to asbestos.
The First Cases
Asbestos, a hazardous mineral, has afflicted and killed thousands of people throughout the years. Asbestos claims can be filed for a variety of reasons, but they usually involve those who were exposed to the substance at work. This includes workers at factories that made asbestos-related items or those working in the construction of buildings containing asbestos and even those who were exposed to asbestos secondhand from household products that were contaminated, like talcum powder.
Anyone who was exposed to asbestos may be afflicted with a variety of illnesses, including mesothelioma and lung cancer, and other respiratory ailments. Many people have received compensation for their injuries even though some these diseases can be fatal. This is because many countries have laws that require companies that create dangerous substances to inform those who could be hurt by them.
The first asbestos lawsuit was filed in 1929. It involved a woman named Anna Pirskowski. She was suffering from a range of ailments, including shortness of breath and the thickening of the tissue around the fingers, which is called clubbing. She was awarded a settlement of $75,000 in what is believed to be the first-ever class action lawsuit that dealt with asbestos.
Asbest lawsuits continued to be filed in the years following. Asbestos litigation became a very broad area of law and many lawyers started to specialize in asbestos litigation. This meant that they dealt with the most serious cases. One firm that did this was Kazan Law, which in the latter half of the 1980s began to concentrate on the bringing of cases on behalf of mesothelioma patients.
Other lawsuits were won by individuals who had suffered from other asbestos-related illnesses like asbestosis or plaques in the pleural cavity. The condition that caused them was like mesothelioma making it simpler to prove for lawyers. These claims also led to the revelation of secret documents that showed how asbestos-related manufacturers tried to hide the dangers. This led to the Asbestos Ban and Phase Out Rule being announced in 1989.
The Second Case
As the number diagnosed with asbestos-related disease increased the families and victims began bringing lawsuits. These lawsuits were filed against companies that mined asbestos, manufactured asbestos-containing products, or sold asbestos-containing goods. Mesothelioma sufferers also filed lawsuits against companies who designed and constructed the structures that they worked in including shipyards, power plants and refineries. The connection between asbestos exposure and mesothelioma development is strong.
In the early 1980s, the legal litigation over asbestos lawsuits grew more intense and the courts began to rule on many aspects of the case process. For instance a federal court ruled that only people suffering from a malignant asbestos-caused disease such as mesothelioma or lung cancer are able to file a lawsuit against the manufacturers of the asbestos products they used. This ruling, also referred to as Borel V. Fibreboard Paper Products Corp. was a major setback in asbestos litigation.
The same time, Nellie Kershaw from Rochdale in England filed what is regarded as the first known lawsuit against asbestos companies. Kershaw was diagnosed with lung problems due to her frequent contact with asbestos fibers, attempted to get the company she worked for to pay for her treatments. However, the company refused. Kershaw died at 33 years old from lung fibrosis.
The second wave of asbestos-related cases focused on workers who worked in construction sites and were exposed kinds of asbestos-containing building materials including fireproofing sprays textures and drywall products. Asbestos attorneys also brought successful cases against companies that produced equipment that contained asbestos-containing material, such as pumps and boilers.
During this time, numerous documents that were incriminating were found that proved asbestos companies have been involved 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 uncovered the conspiracy of these companies to conceal the fact that asbestos was dangerous and to thwart efforts to inform the public of asbestos' dangers.
In the mid-1980s to early-1990s When these and other forms of corporate fraud and conspiracy were uncovered in the 1980s, a wave of class action settlement was initiated, as well as other attempts were made to limit asbestos liability by asbestos companies. These attempts were met with a fierce resistance from plaintiffs' attorneys and their clients, as well as from the public in general.
The Third Case
By the 1970s, asbestos-related companies had lost the ability to conceal information about the devastating effects of mesothelioma as well as other asbestos-related illnesses from the public. This was due in large part to the fact major national publications began to pay attention to the link between mesothelioma, asbestos, and other respiratory diseases, rather than small industry newsletters and medical journals. When the links between asbestos and serious illness were well established and patients began making lawsuits against asbestos producers.
One of the main factors that pushed more asbestos lawsuits in 1970s was a ruling by the courts that allowed plaintiffs to utilize the legal concept of strict liability. 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 liable for any injuries resulting from their products if they knew that their product was unsafe, but did not warn their employees or the general public about its dangers.
In the wake of this ruling, a number of asbestos manufacturers were forced to file for bankruptcy, a procedure that allows businesses to be reorganized in bankruptcy court, put funds aside in trusts to cover asbestos claims, and continue to be in operation. Johns-Manville is one of the most notable examples. It was a victim of numerous lawsuits brought by former factory workers who suffered from asbestosis, mesothelioma and lung cancer. Kazan Law set several cases against the manufacturer and was able get punitive damage verdicts against the company.
Asbestos litigation has grown since then due to the growing number of asbestos-related illnesses. Asbestos litigation is often complex because the illnesses caused by asbestos can take a long time to manifest and are not always apparent to those who are diagnosed.
Some victims have also been waiting for years to receive compensation from insurance companies, even after their employers were found liable. The US Supreme Court has addressed various cases where asbestos companies sought to limit their liability by offering settlements in class action. The court has also considered whether individual defendants could be held liable for injuries caused by asbestos.
The Fourth Case
Asbestos is an incredibly dangerous mineral that has killed or sickened hundreds of thousands of people over the decades. It's also a product that was extensively used by companies who knew it was dangerous and they continued to use it in their manufacturing processes.
As the legal system tackles asbestos lawsuits, new developments are taking place constantly. One of the most significant legal developments is the ruling Lubbe v. Cape Plc. This set the precedent for victims to sue multi-national companies in their home countries to recover compensation.
Often, these cases involve exposure to asbestos in the second degree. Workers who work with asbestos work may transfer it to their family members or spouses. Family members are affected by mesothelioma as well as other asbestos-related diseases.
This kind of case is the basis for many lawsuits filed by relatives of victims in the present. Asbestos lawyers can assist families bring a case against the responsible parties for the asbestos injuries of their loved ones.
The rise of class action lawsuits is a major change in asbestos litigation. These asbestos lawsuits allow victims to asbestos exposure lawyers seek justice with the assistance of a lawyer experienced in the complicated legal issues that these cases bring.
While asbestos lawyers have pushed for this kind of lawsuit, there are those who are against it. In fact, there have been several attempts to pass legislation restricting the use of asbestos class actions.
The latest major advancement in asbestos litigation is the filing an action by Massachusetts residents against four companies over their handling of asbestos removal and disposal. The lawsuit claimed that the companies in violation of state law in not properly disposing asbestos and failing residents from toxic dust.
Asbestos litigation has been a long-running problem that will likely persist for a number of decades to come. The asbestos industry has attempted to avoid responsibility through technical legal arguments and also by attempting to pass legislative solutions that would stop victims from seeking justice. However, it appears that many victims and their attorneys are determined to get justice.