Asbestosis Legal Action

Research showed as early as the 1920’s that asbestos was dangerous. Asbestos companies ignored this evidence or took minimal efforts to protect people working with asbestos until the mid 1970’s when the government started imposing regulations. Due to the negligence of the companies there have been a lot of successful personal injury lawsuits that have gotten compensation for the victims of asbestos exposure and their families. In addition to people who worked in the asbestos industry, the family members of asbestos workers also were exposed to sufficient asbestos fibers in some cases to cause medical damage.

Many states have a statute of limitations on how long a person has to file a personal injury lawsuit after they discover the injury. A statute of limitations means that if the person doesn’t file the lawsuit within a given period of time, the person is prohibited from filing a suit at a later date. In the case of something like asbestosis, the time the injury shows up may be many years after the exposure. For this type of injury the statute of limitations starts at diagnosis. Even so, it is important to speak to a lawyer as soon as possible after getting a diagnosis if you think you might file a lawsuit. Not only will the lawyer protect you against losing the ability to sue by missing the statute of limitations, but the lawyer will also know what information he or she needs from the doctor in order to make the case as strong as possible. Cooperation between doctors and lawyers improve the results of the lawsuit, and makes the process less stressful for all parties concerned.

Most personal injury attorneys get paid a percentage of whatever they recover on their client’s behalf. That means that that the client doesn’t have to come up with money out of his own pocket to pay for an investigation or for the attorney’s time in preparing the case. If the plaintiff, the victim of asbestosis, wins his attorney gets his percentage. If the plaintiff loses, does not recover any damages, then he owes his or her attorney nothing. Although part of preparing any lawsuit is putting evidence together for trial, few cases actually go to trial. Most cases ultimately are settled between the parties so that trial can be avoided.

The amount of money that can be recovered depends on how serious the injury is and how strong the proof is that asbestos rather than some other factor caused the injury. The final amount will also be dependant on actual and projected losses, as well as other factors the court would consider to ensure that justice would be served. Many times the settlement is received within a relatively short time, but on occasion, especially if there is an appeal involved, it may take a lot longer.

A difficulty faced by many asbestos injury plaintiffs in the past few years, is the number of asbestos companies that have declared bankruptcy. These companies have had to pay out some significant settlements and are now in tighter financial straights. The declaration of bankruptcy shields the companies from future suits in many cases. Unfortunately there have been a lot of false claims of asbestos injury made over the years that have made it more difficult for legitimately injured people to recover compensation for the losses they have suffered as a result of asbestos injury (1). They best way to protect a person’s legal rights to recovery is speaking to an experienced personal injury attorney who is knowledgeable about the specific difficulties faced by plaintiffs in asbestos related cases.

'Asbestosis Legal Action' Resources:
  1. Federal Appeals Court Scrutinizes Lawyer’s Conduct in Asbestos Lawsuit, John S. Standler, Legal Backgrounder, vol. 22, no. 1, January 12, 2007