Montana Legal News Articles & Interviews

Trenton, NJ Environmental law has become better at protecting consumers from asbestos exposure in recent decades. But mesothelioma has a very long latency period, sometimes as long as 50 years. The plaintiff’s case in many asbestos mesothelioma lawsuits depends on finding very old samples of the product implicated in exposure. That’s tough, especially when those samples tend to be in the possession of the defendant.

Denver, CO: Many state legislatures in the US spent the first quarter considering reform proposals that increased coverage for first responders who suffer mental stress injuries, according to Business Insurance.

Helena, MT: A woman who worked as a confidential informant for the Missouri River Drug Task Force has filed a lawsuit against the City of Helena alleging professional sexual misconduct on the part of one of the city’s police officers. The unnamed plaintiff alleges that she was sexually assaulted multiple times by a police officer from May 2012 to October 2012. The lawsuit further alleges that the same police officer sexually exploited other victims as well.

A young highway worker who was paralyzed when a construction implement used to lift concrete barriers fell on him has recovered a $5.1 million recovery for his injuries.

Dallas, TX Two roller coaster accidents involving falls from the thrill rides have put the spotlight back on amusement park safety. The amusement park accidents, one of which was fatal, happened within days of each other and have some people asking if more can be done to prevent theme park injuries.

Butte, MT The potential for SSRI Birth Defects would have been furthest from the minds of Lisa Rooney and Wayne Halvorsen when their infant daughter arrived in 2009. However, after their baby was born with a severe heart defect allegedly due to the SSRI antidepressant prescribed to Rooney, the Butte couple decided to take legal action.

Libby, MT According to Mike Crill, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) "screwed up big time" by covering up potentially asbestos-contaminated wood chips in Libby. "I know that millions of dollars have been spent cleaning up this town but that doesn't resolve the issue of people being exposed to asbestos," says Mike. "Government officials have downplayed asbestos mesothelioma since they came to Libby."

Billings, MT Residents near Laurel, Montana were temporarily evacuated Saturday morning after an ExxonMobile crude oil pipeline ruptured and caused an unknown amount of oil to spill into the waterway. The pipeline, which runs under the Yellowstone River near Billings in south-central Montana, apparently leaked for about 30 minutes.

Libby, MT If there were ever such a thing as an asbestosis ''headquarters,'' that would have been the town of Libby, Montana. And two years after W.R. Grace managed to escape prosecution from criminal charges relating to asbestos contamination of the town, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has deemed that the air above Libby is now safe.

Washington, DC Del Monte Fresh Produce N.A., Inc. (“Del Monte Fresh”) of Coral Gables, Florida is recalling 4,992 cartons of cantaloupes, each containing 4 plastic mesh sleeves with 3 cantaloupes per sleeve, because they have the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella Panama, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella Panama often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, infection with Salmonella Panama can result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis and arthritis.