Mesothelioma Lawyers Blog

March 12, 2014

Do-It-Yourself Home Repairs May Account for Next Wave of Asbestos Injuries

Many people are inspired to do home repairs and home remodeling themselves, especially with network shows like HGTV and This Old House making it look so simple to fix up a house. Unfortunately, many homes built before 1980 have asbestos in them, and doing home improvement tasks could cause serious illnesses.

Victims exposed to asbestos can develop a condition called asbestosis as well as other serious issues, including lung cancer or a rare type of cancer called mesothelioma that usually only develops from asbestos exposure. The illnesses may not show up for decades after the exposure, but mesothelioma and other asbestos-related health problems can be difficult or impossible to treat. An experienced mesothelioma lawyer should be consulted by victims for help in pursuing a claim for compensation if they are ill as a result of asbestos exposure.
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March 8, 2014

Court Decision in Asbestos Case Punishes Victims for Bad Decisions They Didn’t Make

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

When Garlock went bankrupt, a federal bankruptcy judge had to decide how much money the company should put into a trust fund to pay asbestos victims who had become ill as a result of exposure to toxic asbestos fibers. Manufacturers of asbestos products pay into these trust funds to ensure that people suffering from mesothelioma, asbestosis and other serious illnesses are able to obtain compensation for losses and damages.

Advocates for asbestos victims indicated that around $1.3 billion should be set aside for the trust to protect the victims. The judge, however, made a decision that some of the asbestos claims being made were not legitimate. As a result, the judge decided to order only $125 million be put aside by Garlock in the asbestos trust fund.
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March 5, 2014

Health Insurers’ Claims to Asbestos Damages

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

In most lawsuits based on defective products or personal injury, plaintiffs file individual claims, which become public knowledge. Asbestos cases are different. Many asbestos manufacturers have gone bankrupt because so many people were harmed by exposure and manufacturers had to compensate for serious health problems like asbestosis and mesothelioma. To ensure that victims harmed by asbestos could be compensated even if the company that made the product was bankrupt, asbestos trust funds were created.

The asbestos trust funds generally keep claims secret in order to protect the private health records of claimants. Rules set forth by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act restrict who a patient’s private data can be released to, and asbestos trust funds cannot and should not publicize details about the claims of victims harmed by asbestos.

The privacy rules and the special circumstances associated with recovering from an asbestos trust fund have, however, created an issue for health insurance companies. These health insurers are now suing to try to get information they need from asbestos trust funds. The outcome of the case could affect plaintiffs who have recovered money in asbestos cases, and it is important for every plaintiff making an asbestos claim to speak to their Boston mesothelioma lawyer about their health insurer’s rights to recover funds.
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February 28, 2014

Massachusetts DEP Fines Essex Demolition Company for Improper Asbestos Handling

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

With the dangers of asbestos so well-known, it’s hard to believe that companies continue to put employees and the public at risk of exposure. Unfortunately, an incident of careless asbestos handling by an Essex demolition company has endangered countless people recently as a result of the company’s complete failure to follow best practices when handling asbestos. The company has been fined and faces further potential liability.

Workers and other individuals harmed by exposure to asbestos can pursue a claim for compensation against companies like this careless demolition business. A mesothelioma lawyer in New England can assist those who have been exposed.
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February 24, 2014

Mesothelioma Patients Face Challenges Paying for Treatment

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

Treatment for mesothelioma can be extremely expensive. Surgery, aggressive chemotherapy and radiation therapy may all be necessary to prolong survival. Patients diagnosed with mesothelioma may also face costs associated with pain-management procedures or palliative care and may not be able to work.

Health insurance can cover some of these expenses, for those with sufficient coverage, but often insurance policies are not comprehensive enough to provide everything that a mesothelioma patient needs. One recent news article, for example, told the story of a young 33-year-old man who had been diagnosed with mesothelioma and who did not have the money to pay for the necessary treatment. He and his wife had turned to crowd-funding to try to help them to raise as much as $50,000 that they needed to meet their medical expenses.

Stories like this are devastating because no mesothelioma patient should be deprived of the treatment needed to save his life simply because of a lack of funding. Mesothelioma is often caused by exposure to asbestos, which may occur on the job. Workers’ compensation claims and legal actions against manufacturers of asbestos can all provide the necessary funds for comprehensive medical treatment. An experienced mesothelioma lawyer in Massachusetts should be consulted by those affected by this cancer for help in determining if they have a claim for benefits.
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February 18, 2014

Studies Link Chest Radiation and Mesothelioma

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

Occupational exposure to asbestos remains the number one cause of mesothelioma, but there has been a decline in recent years in the number of cases of illness caused by working with asbestos on the job. Since asbestos use was phrased out starting in the 1970’s, the number of cases of occupational-related mesothelioma should naturally be going down and should continue to account for a decreasing number of deaths.

Unfortunately, despite the fact that fewer people have been exposed to asbestos in recent decades, there does not appear to be a big drop in new diagnoses of mesothelioma. Instead, it has become increasingly common for patients to be diagnosed with this devastating form of cancer even if they have not even been around asbestos (even secondhand exposure). There have also been more diagnoses of mesothelioma patients who are younger, and who are female.

These new cases of mesothelioma among different demographic groups may have a different cause entirely than asbestos. As Cancer Network reports, their mesothelioma may be linked to radiation for lymphoma. Determining the cause of mesothelioma is essential, and a Boston mesothelioma lawyer can help you to pursue a claim if you have been harmed.
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February 15, 2014

Lung Cancer, Asbestos and Tobacco: Understanding Your Rights

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

The majority of those filing asbestos lawsuits in Massachusetts are people who worked in industries where they were exposed to the dangerous fibers in the course of carrying out their daily duties.

These individuals suffered from what we call occupational exposure. There are other forms of exposure of course, including second-hand, usually stemming from relatives who returned home each day with the material on their clothing.

Yet even for those diagnosed with mesothelioma, in which the only known cause is exposure to asbestos, these cases can be complex. It requires delving back many years into a person’s work history and daily routines. It requires testimony from colleagues and supervisors from decades ago. It requires an extensive analysis of medical records and evaluations. To top it off, most of these cases are fast-tracked, due to the rapid deterioration of patients’ health following diagnosis.
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February 12, 2014

Walston v. Boeing Co. – Asbestos Liability of Employers

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

An ongoing mesothelioma lawsuit raises questions about an employer’s responsibility in cases of asbestos exposure and whether workers’ compensation laws bar plaintiffs from taking action against former employers.

In the case of Walston v. Boeing Co., the plaintiff is attempting to sue his former employer on the grounds that the company “deliberately intended” to cause him harm, as it knew of the dangers involved with asbestos work and failed to properly protect or warn him.

However, the company argues that the lawsuit is barred under Washington state’s Industrial Insurance Act, the state’s workers’ compensation law, which offers employer immunity under the exclusivity provisions.
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February 8, 2014

Report: Mesothelioma Litigation is Gaining Momentum

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

A new report indicates insurance companies are largely unprepared for a massive “third wave” of asbestos claims that are expected to be filed within the next several years.

mesothelioma attorneys in New England have been well aware for some time that asbestos litigation hasn’t been slowing down. However, many insurance companies may be caught off-guard by new filings because, according to the New Jersey-based Assured Research group, these firms are leaning heavily on statistics that are obsolete.

In Assured Research’s report, “A Third Wave in Asbestos Liabilities Ahead,” the authors indicate that part of the reason insurance companies aren’t ready is because they haven’t taken into consideration that many new asbestos litigation claims stem not just from mesothelioma diagnoses, but from lung cancer diagnoses as well.
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February 4, 2014

$27.5 Million Mesothelioma Verdict for English Professor

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

The 40-year-old English professor is not your typical mesothelioma plaintiff.

He’s relatively young. He is married to his high school sweetheart, has a Master’s degree and a 6-year-old daughter. He teaches at an Ohio community college and on weekends, plays drums in a popular local band.

He’s also dying of mesothelioma, a terminal cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. A Cuyahoga County jury recently awarded him and his family a $27.5 million verdict against an asbestos defendant deemed responsible for his prognosis. Our Boston mesothelioma attorneys understand it is the largest ever such verdict handed down in Ohio.
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