A mesothelioma diagnosis wreaks havoc on your finances causing lost wages, expensive medical bills, group support expenses, funeral expenses, travel expenses and several other expenses not covered by health insurance. Each case is given considerable attention and focus to ensure that your finances are recovered given the suit is successful. Over $400 million has been recovered by our firm for mesothelioma and lung cancer victims. It is evident that these cases bring a high return of money deserved to plaintiffs.
Asbestos was a building material widely used in the UK from the 1930s up until the 1970s and was valued for its strength and resistance to fire and chemicals. However, what was not known at the time was that tiny asbestos fibres were working their way into the lungs of unknowing workers whenever a block of asbestos was broken up.
Years later, these workers start to develop cancers and scarring in their lungs that has developed as a direct result of these fibres. Asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma and asbestosis have a long latency period and it can take between 15 and 60 years for symptoms to become apparent.
These conditions cannot be cured and statistics from Cancer Research UK show that just 10% of people diagnosed with mesothelioma will survive beyond 3 years. Asbestos-related diseases are a type of industrial illness which clearly requires substantial compensation to be paid to the injured person or their family, if the person has died.
The key question is that of who should pay the compensation and how much. If a person suffering from mesothelioma or asbestosis has worked for more than one firm that exposed him to the dangers of asbestos, are the companies jointly liable to pay compensation or can just one company be found to be negligent?
A ruling in the case of Fairchild (2002) created the precedent that if one business could be found to have been negligent, that business would have to pay the full compensation award. This was greeted with relief from claimants, who find it difficult or even impossible to track down all the employers who may have exposed them to the risk of asbestos after 30 years.
However, this ruling was amended by the House of Lords in the recent case of Barker v St Gobain Pipelines (2006). It was decided that all the companies who had exposed the claimant to asbestos should share the compensation burden. The insurance company of each business would pay compensation in proportion to the risk they caused.
This could present the scenario of mesothelioma and asbestosis sufferers only receiving part of the compensation to which they are entitled if they are unable to identify all of the businesses that may have caused their industrial illness.
The Pneumoconiosis (Workers' Compensation) Act of 1979 offers people the chance to make a compensation claim if they cannot track down any of their employers during their time of exposure to asbestos. However, if any mesothelioma or asbestosis compensation at all has been awarded to the claimant by the Courts, this fund is made unavailable, meaning that this Act will not be of any assistance to the people who have received partial compensation.
A solution must be reached for the thousands of people who are diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, and other asbestos-related industrial illnesses each year. The legacy of asbestos is still here for years to come. A Health and Safety Executive report in 2003 suggested that diagnoses of these diseases will hit peak figures between 2011 and 2015, when at least 2,500 people a year will be dying from asbestos-related disease.
Just what the answer is has not yet been determined. One idea that has been put forward is that of having the equivalent of the Motor Insurers Bureau, which would represent untraceable companies. Insurers would each put into a pool to which claimants could turn after all other options are exhausted.
Another option is that the ruling in the Barker case is overturned and the previous method of one company taking full responsibility for compensation is reinstated. However, insurance companies are likely to offer many objections to this suggestion.
The most important thing is that the people suffering from mesothelioma, asbestosis and other incurable industrial illnesses get compensation for their injuries. It is recommended that anyone considering making a compensation claim of this type gets specialist representation from personal injury solicitors with particular experience and expertise in this field.
After Fees & Expenses Were Deducted, Our Clients with Mesothelioma Received
- $6,137,400 – a 68-year-old woman exposed to asbestos assisting her husband, who was a general contractor and from contact with his clothes (Joan Mahoney)
- $5,478,700 – a 46-year-old man exposed to asbestos repairing boats and demolishing and repairing fire or flood-damaged buildings (Scott Musladin)
- $3,275,200 – a 67-year-old man exposed to asbestos serving in the navy and as a construction contractor on commercial and residential projects (Ruben Flores)
- $3,247,500 – a 57-year-old man exposed to asbestos serving in the navy and as a refrigeration and air conditioning mechanic (Michael Robertson)
- $3,174,500 – an 81-year-old man exposed to asbestos working at a paper mill and as a carpenter (Martin Lujan)
- $2,835,300 – a 62-year-old man exposed to asbestos installing industrial and commercial furnaces and air conditioning units (Leonard Jansen)
- $2,736,000 – a 63-year-old man exposed to asbestos serving in the navy and as a machinist at various manufacturing plants (Richard VanTassel)
- $2,574,400 – a 49-year-old man exposed to asbestos products serving in the navy. (Kenley Groce)
- $2,468,500 – a 40-year-old man exposed to asbestos serving in the navy and from contact with the clothes of his father, who worked at a manufacturing plant (Robbie Cagle)
- $2,425,000 – a 61-year-old man exposed to asbestos serving in the navy and as a telephone installer and repairman (Allan Whaley)
- $2,045,000 – a 75-year-old man exposed to asbestos serving in the navy and as a foreman and carpenter for a utility company (Art Kuhnke)
- $2,045,000 – an 81-year-old man exposed to asbestos working at an oil refinery and as a drywaller (Elmer Brodnax)
- $1,995,000 – a 48-year-old man exposed to asbestos at work repairing boilers and as a roofer (Kelvin Sandel)
- $1,858,000 – a 74-year-old man exposed to asbestos working at a steel mill and as an auto mechanic (Jose Valdez)
- $1,832,000 – a 61-year-old man exposed to asbestos serving in the navy and as an electrician (Ralph Grindstaff)
- $1,757,000 – a 63-year-old man exposed to asbestos serving in the navy and while working at a manufacturing plant (Daryle Root)
- $1,746,000 – a 67-year-old man exposed to asbestos working as a mechanic and machinist (Henry Lopez)
- $1,724,000 – a 62-year-old woman exposed to asbestos from contact with the clothes of her husband, who worked as an electrician at a shipyard (Faye Garrett-Takaki)
- $1,715,000 – a 65-year-old man exposed to asbestos working as a carpenter (Ernest Horrocks)
- $1,685,000 – a 50-year-old man exposed to asbestos as an oil field worker (Thomas Langved)
Find out more:
