lawsuits Archive
Asbestos News Roundup: 4.16.14 – Asbestos and Navy Vets
April 16th, 2014. By LucyC
A roundup of recent asbestos-related news and information that you should be aware of. An ongoing list of reported asbestos hot spots in the US from the Asbestos News Roundup archive appears on our asbestos map.
Navy Veterans at Risk for Asbestos
US Navy Veterans are at a particularly high risk for asbestos-related disease, due to their asbestos exposure while working on navy ships undergoing refits. But because asbestos-related disease can take up to 30 years or more to manifest, it is often detected long after men have left the Navy.
The states with the most US Navy Veterans include California, Florida, New York, Texas, Ohio, Michigan, Arizona, Massachusetts, Washington, Maine, Oregon, Arizona, Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa, Pennsylvania, Montana, Kansas, North Dakota, Hawaii, Nebraska, and Mississippi.
US Navy Veterans are not the only group of workers at high risk for asbestos exposure. Men and women who worked in power plants, manufacturing factories, chemical plants, oil refineries, mines, smelters, aerospace manufacturing facilities, demolition construction work sites, railroads, automotive manufacturing facilities, or auto brake shops may also have been exposed to high levels of asbestos.
Asbestos Lawsuits
St. Clair County, IL: Jeanne Belman, special administrator of deceased Marcella Goedeke estate, has filed an asbestos lawsuit against CSX Transportation, alleging the company is responsible for the developing asbestos mesothelioma and Goedeke’s subsequent death.
Filed a lawsuit March 14, the lawsuit claims the railway allowed its employees to be exposed to asbestos despite being aware of the associated adverse health risks.
Specifically, Belman alleges that Goedeke suffered second hand asbestos exposure to asbestos fibers that clung to her husband’s work clothing. Goedeke’s husband worked at The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company. When Goedeke’s husband came home, she inhaled and ingested the asbestos fibers that were on his clothes, the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit claims that the asbestos mesothelioma caused Goedeke great pain and disability, and that she endured serious mental anguish and extreme nervousness and incurred significant medical costs, the suit states. She passed away on March 18, 2012, the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit claims Goedeke’s asbestos disease could have been avoided had The Baltimore and Railroad Company heeded the advice of experts in 1935 who warned the railroad to educate all its employees about asbestos fibers. According to the complaint, the experts also advised the company to get rid of asbestos dust, to sprinkle the working area with water, to have employees wear inhalers and to have frequent analyses made of the dust content of air at different times during work hours.
Instead, Belman alleges the railroad negligently exposed Goedeke’s husband to asbestos, allowed him to carry the asbestos with him into his home, failed to warn him that it could cause disease, failed to prevent him from being exposed to the asbestos, failed to provide him with protective clothing and allowed unsafe work practices to become routine.
Eventually, The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company was taken over by CSX, which Belman named as a defendant in her complaint that seeks damages under the Federal Employers Liability Act (FELA). Belman is seeking a judgment of more than $100,000, plus costs. (madisonrecord.com)
St. Clair County, IL: Nicole Lockett has filed an asbestos lawsuit naming 21 defendant corporations which, she alleges, caused the Randle R. Lockett Sr. to develop mesothelioma after his exposure to asbestos-containing products throughout his father’s career. He subsequently died of his asbestos disease.
According to the lawsuit, Randle R. Lockett Sr.’s father worked in the military and at ICBM and Minuteman and MX missile site maintaining and repairing silos. The defendants should have known of the harmful effects of asbestos, but failed to exercise reasonable care and caution for Mr. Lockett`s father`s safety, the suit states. As a result of his asbestos-related disease, Randle R. Lockett Sr. became disabled and disfigured, incurred medical costs and suffered great physical pain and mental anguish, the complaint says. Additionally, he was prevented from pursuing his normal course of employment and, as a result, lost large sums of money that would have accrued, the lawsuit states.
Nicole Lockett is seeking a judgment of more than $50,000, compensatory damages of more than $200,000, punitive damages in an amount sufficient to punish the defendants for their misconduct and other relief the court deems just.(madionsrecord.com)
St. Clair County, IL: An asbestos lawsuit has been filed by Betty G. Crutchfield naming 41 defendant corporations, which, she claims, caused Donald Crutchfield Sr. to develop lung cancer after his exposure to asbestos-containing products throughout his career. Mr. Crutchfield died from his asbestos disease.
As a result of his asbestos-related illness Donald Crutchfield Sr. became disabled and disfigured, incurred medical costs and suffered great physical pain and mental anguish, Betty Crutchfield claims. In addition, he were prevented from pursuing his normal course of employment and, as a result, lost large sums of money that would have accrued to him, the lawsuit states.
Betty G. Crutchfield is seeking a judgment of more than $300,000, compensatory damages of more than $100,000, punitive damages in an amount sufficient to punish the defendants for their misconduct and other relief the court deems just. (madisonrecord.com)
Asbestos Settlements
New York, NY: A $980,000 judgement has been upheld by the US Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit entered against defendant Cleaver Brooks. The court found that the plaintiff presented enough evidence at trial to support a causal link between the defendant’s asbestos-containing boilers and the deceased Kit L. McCormick illness.
Kelly McCormick filed the asbestos lawsuit on behalf of her husband, Kit L. McCormick, who was injured allegedly as a result of asbestos exposure. (harrismartin.com)
Asbestos News Roundup: 3.20.14 – Work History & Asbestos Risk
March 20th, 2014. By LucyC
A roundup of recent asbestos-related news and information that you should be aware of. An ongoing list of reported asbestos hot spots in the US from the Asbestos News Roundup archive appears on our asbestos map.
High Risk Asbestos Disease Occupations
Many workplaces in the US are now considered to have put workers at high-risk for asbestos exposure—decades ago. These include: US Navy, oil refineries, shipyards, chemical manufacturing facilities, aerospace manufacturing facilities, mines, smelters, coal fired power plants, construction work sites, auto repair shops, plumbers, welders, electricians, and most manufacturing, or industrial plants that were operating in the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, or 1980s.
Sadly, many individuals who served in the US Navy, worked at a power plant, an oil refinery, or a shipyard decades ago are now being diagnosed with asbestos disease—the average age of diagnosis of asbestos mesothelioma is 72 years, according to the Centers for Disease Control, (CDC).
Although strict regulations about the use of asbestos have been put in place, the potential for asbestos exposure remains. In 2009, the CDC reported:
“Although asbestos has been eliminated in the manufacture of many products, it is still being imported (approximately 1,730 metric tons in 2007) and used in the United States in various construction and transportation products. Ensuring a future decrease in mesothelioma mortality requires meticulous control of exposures to asbestos and other materials that might cause mesothelioma. Recent studies suggest that carbon nanotubes (fiber-shaped nanoparticles), which are increasingly being used in manufacturing, might share the carcinogenic mechanism postulated for asbestos and induce mesothelioma, underscoring the need for documentation of occupational history in future cases.” The full report can be accessed at the CDC’s webpage. http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5815a3.htm
Asbestos Lawsuits
Jefferson County, TX: The family of recently deceased William Ray Furlong have filed an asbestos lawsuit against EI DuPont De Nemours and Co. alleging the company is responsible for Mr. Furlong’s asbestos illness and subsequent death.
Virginia Furlong, wife, and Helen Furlong Moity, daughter, allege Dupont knowingly exposed William Furlong to toxic and carcinogenic dusts including asbestos during the time he worked at Dupont’s Works Facility in Beaumont.
According to the suit, William Furlong developed mesothelioma from which he died in 2012.
The Furlongs are seeking more than $100,000 in damages. (setexasrecord.com)
Asbestos Settlements
Erie County, NY: A $3 million settlement has been awarded to the family of a man who contracted and died from asbestos mesothelioma. According to the lawsuit, the deceased, Gerald Suttner, worked at the GM Powertrain Facility in Tonawanda, New York, and involved repairing valves manufactured by Crane and other manufacturers, valves which contained asbestos gaskets and packing materials. It wasn’t until after Suttner had retired from the GM plant that he was diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma. He passed away just 12 months later, at the age of 77. Suttner’s family subsequently sued the companies which made asbestos-containing products.
The plaintiff’s surviving family filed suit in the Supreme Court of Erie County, New York for product liability and wrongful death. The plaintiffs sought recovery for compensatory and punitive damages against Crane and numerous other manufacturers of asbestos-creating products the decedent had been exposed to. The plaintiff asserted that Crane had known as early as the 1930s of the hazardous qualities of asbestos and failed to warn the deceased. (jvra.com)
Philadelphia, PA: A $75,000 award for damages has been granted in a whistleblower lawsuit. Filed by a city police officer, the lawsuit claimed that the police officer’s superiors retaliated against him after he complained of shoddy asbestos removal at the Police Athletic League center he managed in Philadelphia.
The judge hearing the case ordered that Zenak, 44, a 23-year veteran officer, be returned to his job as manager of the PAL center at Wissinoming United Methodist Church, 4419 Comly St., and reimbursed $75,000 for 2711/2 days of leave he used after suing and $411 in medical expenses.
In 2012, Zenak filed suit under Pennsylvania’s “whistle-blower” law, naming the city, Police Department, PAL, church and J. Bailey Builders, the New Jersey-based contractor, as defendants.
According to the lawsuit, Zenak had managed the PAL center since 2008. In 2011, the contractor doing renovations told him there was exposed asbestos wrapping 60 feet of pipe hanging in the room where children did homework. Several weeks later, after Zenak found the pipe insulation gone and a layer of dust everywhere, he complained to his superiors, and he got the first of several reprimands, the PhillyNews reports.
A civil suit is pending which seeks medical monitoring for nearly 100 children who might have been exposed to asbestos while attending programs at the Wissinoming PAL center. (phillynews.com)
Finding a Good Lawyer Sucks – PART 1
February 11th, 2014. By AbiK
This one may get ugly…it’s the personal saga of yours truly as I embark on the process of hiring the right personal injury attorney—for real! The attorneys I’m reaching out to do not know I work for a legal news website. So I’ve got no special “in” here and will live this process just as everyone who clicks that “submit claim” button does. Only, to be fair, I’m not submitting a claim here, where I work. Ready to come along for the ride?
The Beginning: I think I need a lawyer.
It happens. One day, you say the words, “Maybe I should talk to a lawyer.” There’s an uneasiness in your stomach as the words flow from your lips. But you’ve reached that point where, for whatever reason, you need—and are ready to pursue—legal help.
You might think your next step would sort of be like what you’d do if, instead, you had said something like, “Guess I need to get the car checked.” No. That would be too easy: Pick up the phone. Schedule a time to bring the car in. Done. A pain in the a$$, but easy.
No. When you need to find a good lawyer, you start to feel more the way Rose might in a Dr. Who episode—you know, the parts when she’s all like “But why Doc-tuh?…Doc-tuh?…Doc-TUH?!?” And there’s Rose standing helpless and clueless in the middle of some street while “Doctuh” has disappeared.
And I’m not talking about trying to find your run-of-the-mill divorce lawyer or the lawyer who writes up your will. No disrespect to those folks—but their work, while important and at times quite messy, is pretty straightforward. You know the end goal and pretty much how to get to it. And, chances are, you can get a few good referrals right from your circle of friends. No, I’m talking about needing a personal injury attorney. Things start to get murky when you’re in the land of “harm”, “damages”, “wrongdoing”, and the ever-popular “pain and suffering”.
So here I am, muttering that “get a lawyer” phrase and…I’m stymied. Yep. Don’t know where the hell to start. And here’s the part I want y’all to remember: I WORK IN THE LEGAL INDUSTRY. So for those of you who do not, and who are either on this journey or have been on it, please know I have no special “in” that I’m using and yes, I really am feeling your pain. Really.
Now, before you even get to picking up your mobile to dial 1-800/888/877/866-INJURY-NOW or whatever cute & catchy vanity phone number you saw as you blew by that billboard on Route You-Name-It, you hesitate. You don’t even know if you SHOULD call an attorney, right?
Maybe you’re overreacting. Being a bit prickly. A wuss. After all, people (the media?) always tend to show potential plaintiffs in the worst light: we’re all opportunists (hot coffee lawsuit anyone?). Or, we just don’t suck it up. So there’s that stigma to reconcile with yourself at the outset. And let’s face it, most people really don’t want to be litigious. It’s too…confrontational.
Then, there’s all that imagery of advanced learning—framed certificates of this or that, suits & ties, mahogany everywhere and built-in bookcases with series upon series of books that all have that same monotonous red & gold leaf binding. Who are these people? And who the hell wears a suit all the time anymore?
It’s off-putting. You feel self-conscious, insignificant, daunted and on the defensive before you’ve even opened your mouth or shaken any hands. Why is it that those legal help billboards scream “Come On In!” and yet for some reason you still don’t feel that welcome feeling? As someone whose background is in marketing—yea, I drank the “consumer’s always right!” kool-aid and am a strong believer in transparency—if I had the option to shop elsewhere for legal help—for example, maybe my mother-in-law who’s been known to put up a good fight (and has no problem stating her mind) would like to represent me. I’d get her on contingency. But there’s that lousy requirement about being admitted to the bar. Excuse me, The Bar.
So here we go. I’ve weighed the pro’s and con’s—as much as I know of what those could possibly be—and I’ve decided to go for it. I’m going to find an attorney! I’m going to right the wrong!
Not so fast.
You thought you’d walk into the lawyer store and pick one off the shelf, eh? Thought they’d have your fit, size and color right there for the taking? Silly you. Well, actually, not silly you–after all, that’s sort of how you find a doctor, right? You figure out what part of you ails and you get a doctor who works on that part.
Ahh, but just try to let your fingers do the walking in the Yellow Pages (online edition, of course) for a lawyer, it’s not like they’re listed by the lawsuits they work on. Go ahead and see for yourself. Search for “lawyer” and you’ll be given some options to further filter your search. One of those options is “Personal Injury Attorney”. Think you’ve found your match? Think again!
No—the lawyer who argues the case about Yaz birth control is NOT the same guy (or gal, we don’t discriminate here) who argues your wrongful termination case and is NOT the same guy/gal who even might argue your egress/regress employment issue! And see—I’ve already started with the jargon—WTF is egress/regress?!? (Yes, I know what it is…I’m making a point.)
That will be your first surprise. Which you won’t necessarily know unless you actually MAKE CONTACT with someone at the law firm you’re trying to connect with, and they tell you in so many words that you’ve got the wrong address (aka, the proverbial “I don’t really handle those cases” line that tells you you’re not welcome there, but does not quite tell you where you should be.)
Frustrated yet? And you’ve only just begun (nod to The Carpenters).
So, first, you need to know what your problem is. It’s not all that difficult, but no one REALLY explains that well up front. So, if it’s employment-related, you need an employment lawyer (in your state of employment, I might add). If it’s a medical device problem, you need a medical device attorney. Tracking with me? Good.
So that’s where I am in this process. I’ve figured out my problem, figured out the kind of attorney I’m looking for, and now I’ve started to reach out to them. IMPORTANT NOTE: The easiest/best thing for me to do would be to submit a claim form to request legal help right here on LawyersandSettlements.com (shameless plug)—after all, my claim would go to at least three good lawyers—shotgun style! I like that! But, again, that would be too easy and I don’t sh*t where I eat… So I’m out on the “open market”, so to speak.
I won’t name names throughout this process. But come along with me and we’ll share our pain. And we’ll ask the question (quite often I might add): Why is it so hard to find a lawyer? And maybe, just maybe, we’ll make it better somehow.
Stay tuned.
Top 10 Legal News Stories of 2013
January 7th, 2014. By AbiK
Bet you can’t guess what the top legal news story on LawyersandSettlements.com was for 2013 (and no, none of them featured former NYC mayoral hopeful Anthony Weiner…).
I’ll take that bet even further—I bet most attorneys, who you’d think would be in the know on these things, couldn’t even guess.
That’s because 2013 turned out to be a pretty interesting year in terms of the top legal news stories our journalists covered. While employment lawsuits—typically involving issues such as unpaid overtime and misclassification, on-the-job discrimination, workers’ comp, and wrongful termination—are always reader faves, in 2013 something strange happened: employment issues did not show up in our top ten news stories. At all.
Go figure, eh?
To be fair, when it came to content posted other than legal news articles (i.e., emerging issues, settlements, lawsuits filed), employment settlements drew the most readers. But it was health-related issues that drove readers’ interest when it came to articles and interviews. Here’s how the year’s top ten legal news stories played out (as measured by number of clicks the articles published in 2013 received):
1. Denied Disability: Social Security Recognizes Fibromyalgia
2. Health Canada Documents Link Yasmin and Yaz to Deaths
3. Are Fen-Phen Pills Back? You Would be Half-Right…
4. New York State Cracks Down on Illegal Internet Payday Loans
5. Mirena User Suffers Miscarriage, Now Filing Mirena Lawsuit
6. Mirena Side Effects Lead to Early Hysterectomy for Young Plaintiff
7. Monster Caffeine Levels: When Too Much Energy Isn’t Good for You
8. Junior Hockey League Player Filing Ulcerative Colitis Accutane Lawsuit
9. Yasmin Birth Control Suspected in Deaths of Canadian Teens
10. Mesothelioma Victim Awarded $8 Million
And if you’re wondering what the number one legal news story was for 2012…here’s that one (and, you guessed it, it was about a wage and hour lawsuit, the ‘Lunch Break Lawsuit‘ (Brinker Restaurant Corp. v. Superior Court))
Asbestos News Roundup: 12.12.13 – Cigarettes & Asbestos Risk
December 12th, 2013. By LucyC
A roundup of recent asbestos-related news and information that you should be aware of. An ongoing list of reported asbestos hot spots in the US from the Asbestos News Roundup archive appears on our asbestos map.
Cigarettes & Asbestos Risk
It is hard to think of anything that could make cigarettes more dangerous, but back in the 1950s, certain cigarettes actually contained asbestos in their filters. Those asbestos-containing cigarettes have led to lawsuits alleging mesothelioma and asbestosis disease, either on the part of people who smoked the cigarettes or those who worked in the factory that supplied the filters. Other lawsuits alleging exposure to asbestos fibers resulting in asbestosis lung disease are still pending.
According to Daily Business Review (9/19/13), Richard Delisle was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a fatal condition linked to asbestos exposure, in 2012. He alleges that his smoking of Kent cigarettes, which reportedly used a filter that contained asbestos, contributed to his developing mesothelioma. Also included as defendants in the trial were a paper mill company where Delisle was employed and the manufacturer of the filters used in the Kent cigarettes.
A jury found the cigarette maker, Lorillard, and the maker of the filters each 22 percent responsible for Delisle’s condition, with another 16 percent fault given to the paper company. The final 40 percent was against other defendants. In all, the jury awarded Delisle $8 million, with Lorillard paying $3.52 million as a result of an indemnity agreement between Lorillard and the maker of the filter manufacturer.
Asbestos Lawsuits
Philadelphia, PA: A$2.3 million award in an asbestos mass tort case has been upheld by a trial court judge in Philadelphia. Common Pleas Court Judge Mark I. Bernstein refused to throw out the multi-million dollar verdict against Crane Co., DAP Inc., Duro Dyne Corp., The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. and Goodyear Canada Inc., which had been reached following a jury trial in late February, the Pennsylvania record reportss.
Charlotte Vinciguerra filed her asbestos lawsuit on behalf of her late husband, Frank Vinciguerra, who died from malignant mesothelioma on November 3, 2010.
Mrs. Vinciguerra filed suit in June 2012, citing numerous companies as defendants, many of whom were dismissed pre-trial. The lawsuit alleged that Mr. Vinciguerra developed mesothelioma as a result of his exposure to asbestos at work as a sheet metal helper and sheet metal mechanic for E.I. DuPont De Nemours & Co. from 1951 to 1985. Frank Vinciguerra was diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma in the summer of 2010, according to court records.
Mrs. Vinciguerra alleged that E.I. DuPont failed to exercise reasonable care to protect her husband and others from the hazardous, dangerous and harmful conditions that existed at the property, according to the lawsuit.
The defendants claimed, in their attempt to get a new trial, that the trial judge allowed the plaintiff’s expert witness to testify that “each and every breath” and “every exposure” to asbestos-containing fiber was causative of Frank Vinciguerra’s injuries, in violation of precedence set by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in the case of Betz v. Pneumo Abex LLC. However, Judge Bernstein wrote that none of the plaintiff’s expert witnesses ever offered this opinion during the course of the litigation.
During the trial, Dr. Steven Markowitz, an occupational and environmental medicine expert, testified that it was his opinion that Frank Vinciguerra’s exposure to asbestos likely caused the man’s disease.
According to court records, Markowitz explained that there is a dose-response relationship in asbestos disease, and concepts of cumulative exposure to asbestos.
Markowitz’s testimony was based upon his individual analysis of the specific factors in Vinciguerra’s condition, was offered to a reasonable degree of medical certainty, and was “fully subject to cross-examination,” Judge Bernstein wrote. The Judge also noted that Markowitz’s testimony clearly explained “that it is the cumulative effect which causes the disease.”
The total verdict for the plaintiff is $2,286,376.44. (pennrecord.com)
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