MESOTHELIOMA INFORMATION

FAQ

Have there been asbestos class actions which I can join and receive money?

I heard many companies have gone bankrupt. Is there still money for victims?

Does a lawsuit have to be filed for a victim to be compensated for asbestos disease?

What is involved in an asbestos lawsuit?

How are attorney fees handled in asbestos litigation?

Should an asbestos case be filed in a state or federal court?

How do I find a lawyer to handle my case?

Q. Have there been asbestos class actions which I can join and receive money?

Presently, there are no national asbestos class action settlements paying money to asbestos victims.

Q. I heard many companies have gone bankrupt. Is there still money for victims?

It is true that a number of asbestos companies have gone bankrupt. Is also true that some of those bankruptcies were planned contrivances attempting to defraud asbestos victims of payments for their injuries. Some of the companies that filed bankruptcy engaged in improper transfers of their assets prior to the bankruptcy filing in an attempt to avoid payments for the deaths and disease they caused. A number of the bankruptcy cases have taken years to resolve while lawsuits were filed in bankruptcy court to force a return of assets taken from the companies.

Despite what you may have heard, compensation is still available for deserving victims in most instances. First of all, a number of the bankruptcies have resulted in asbestos compensation trusts being created to pay claims. Funds from a number of these trusts may be available if proper claims for compensation are filed. Further, a number of companies that sold asbestos products are not in bankruptcy and are paying claims as they are resolved in the court system.

The following asbestos companies are known to have filed petitions in bankruptcy court. Some of these companies are paying claims through trusts set up as a result of the bankruptcy proceedings:

• 48 Insulations Inc.
• A& I
• A-Best Products Co.
• A.P. Green/GIT
• ACandS Inc.
• Allis-Chalmers
• Armatex
• Armstrong World
• Arta Group Inc.
• Asarco
• Babcock & Wilcox
• Burns and Roe
• CE Thurston
• Celotex
• Combustion Engineering
• Congoleum Corporation
• Crane/MCC Holdings Inc.
• Dana Corp.
• Eagle Picher
• EJ Bartells Co Inc.
• Federal Mogul Global/T&N
• Flintkote
• G-I Holdings
• Halliburton/DII
• Hercules Chemical Co.
• HK Porter
• Home Insurance
• Honeywell/NARCO
• Johns-Manville
• JT Thorpe Co.
• JT Thorpe Inc.-California
• Kaiser Aluminum
• Keene
• Kewanee Boiler Corp.
• Lykes Bros.
• M.H. Detrick Co.
• MDL 875
• NARCO/GIT
• National Gypsum
• Oglebay Norton
• Owens Corning/Fibreboard
• Pittsburgh Corning
• Plibrico
• Porter-Hayden Company
• Quigley Company Inc.
• Rapid American
• Raytech
• Rock Wool
• Rutland Fire Clay
• Shook and Fletcher
• Solutia
• Swan
• THAN
• Thorpe Insulation Co.
• Travelers
• U.S. Mineral Products
• Unarco
• US Gypsum
• W.R. Grace
• Western MacArthur

Q. Does a lawsuit have to be filed for a victim to be compensated for asbestos disease?

Ordinarily, yes. Although the companies that sold asbestos products are clearly responsible for the diseases caused in those who used the products, nearly all the companies continue to deny any responsibility when presented with a claim. As a result, it is highly unlikely that any individual can expect to be compensated without some form of legal action. In some states, and in some situations, workers compensation coverage may provide nominal relief to a disabled victim. Generally, workers compensation benefits do not provide meaningful relief. In addition, claims filed through the bankruptcy courts do not ordinarily require the filing of a separate lawsuit.

Q. What is involved in an asbestos lawsuit?

Every asbestos lawsuit is unique. Generally, in preparation of an asbestos lawsuit, however, the following activities will take place:

Pre-suit preparation

Before contacting a lawyer, your doctor or your work health surveillance project may have told you that your lungs appear scarred on X-ray, or you are having trouble breathing, or you may have been diagnosed with cancer.

You will sign an attorney-client contract with the lawyer you have chosen to represent you. The lawyer will want to know where you worked, who you worked with, and what asbestos products you can recall seeing on the job. He will want to know the type of work you performed, how long you worked with or around asbestos, and names of your co-workers.

You will be asked to sign employment, Social Security information and medical releases so that your lawyers can gather as much information as possible about your health and work. They may follow-up by contacting your co-workers or friends to ask them what they remember about asbestos on the job and the nature of asbestos exposure received.

The filing of the lawsuit

After as much information as possible has been gathered your lawyers will prepare a formal complaint. This document informs the defendants about the nature of your claim, the legal basis for recovery, and that they must respond or the judge will enter a judgment against them.

The defendants will then either file an "answer" to the complaint denying any responsibility, or file a motion to dismiss which asks the judge to dismiss the lawsuit and not require them to answer. Motions to dismiss are based on "legal grounds." The motion may claim you haven't stated a valid legal basis for recovery in your complaint. It may say that you did not file your complaint within the period of time the law requires after you knew or should have known you had a disease - this is called a statute of limitation defense. In some situations, the defendants may demand a "more definite statement" claiming they don't understand why they have been sued. Ordinarily, such motions in the lawsuit create a month to three months of delay. If you are dying of cancer, the defendants may use such motions as a tactic to delay your case, hoping you will not live long enough to see trial.

Discovery

If a defendant’s motion to dismiss is denied, and the defendants have answered, they will ask you questions through your lawyer. These are called interrogations. You will be required to answer the questions to the best of your ability and will swear to the answers under oath. The defendants will also ask for all your past medical records in an effort to belittle the extent of your injuries, find other possible causes for your injuries, and divert the blame to argue that you have known about your asbestos disease longer than you claim and should have filed suit then. They hope to show that you knew or should have known asbestos made you sick. If successful in this effort, they can get your case dismissed and not compensate you.

The defendants will also take testimony from you and any witness before trial. The defendants hope to show that you can't prove that it was their product that caused your injury. They may try to show that you have bad health habits, such as drinking or smoking, that have harmed your health. They will try to get you to admit that you knew you had an asbestos problem years before the suit was filed in an effort to convince the judge or jury that you waited too long to file suit.

Trial

If your case does not settle, and is not dismissed, the judge will eventually set a trial date. The trial proceeds as follows: (1) Jury Selection; (2) Preliminary jury instructions by the judge; (3) Opening statement by your lawyer; (4) Opening statement by the defense lawyers; (5) Witness and documents presented by the plaintiff's attorney; (6) Resting of the plaintiff's case; (7) Motions by the defense attorneys out of the presence of the jury asking the judge to dismiss your suit saying you did not prove your case; (8) The defense case including their witnesses and documents; (9) Resting of the defense case; (10) Rebuttal of the defense case by witnesses and documents presented by the plaintiff if necessary; (11) Jury instructions; (12) Closing by the plaintiff's attorney; (13) Closing by the defense attorney; (14) The plaintiff's rebuttal closing; (15) Deliberations; and finally, (16) Verdict.

Appeal

If the plaintiff prevails in the lawsuit and the jury awards fair compensation, you may expect an appeal of the verdict. The appeal will, however, require the defendant to post a bond in the amount of the verdict awarded by the jury.

Q. How are attorney fees handled in asbestos litigation?

Getting a lawsuit to trial may take several months, or two or more years depending on the court. Preparation will require hiring of expert witnesses to educate the jury about medical and other issues in the case. The cost of travel and depositions may run into several thousand dollars. Ordinarily, the lawyer representing the plaintiff advances all initial costs associated with suit preparation and trial. Expenses are deducted from the plaintiff’s recovery.

Attorney fees are usually based on contingency fee contracts in which the lawyers receive a percentage of the victim’s total recovery before expenses are deducted.

Q. Should an asbestos case be filed in a state or federal court?

The decision of where to file a lawsuit depends on the facts of each case.

Q. How do I find a lawyer to handle my case?

Asbestos litigation is an area in which a select number of firms have a good deal of experience and knowledge, and there is a wide degree of knowledge and ability, or lack thereof, among the lawyers who hold themselves out as asbestos attorneys.

The fact that a lawyer has a Web site is not a gauge of his ability.

If you are a victim and a union member, you might be well-advised to contact your union national headquarters and ask it to recommend a lawyer it believes is experienced in your area. If you are relying on a website advertisement, the phone directory, or any published solicitation for your business, and you are a victim with a serious injury, do not be shy about asking the lawyer for his qualifications before you hire him. The time you invest hiring the correct lawyer for your problem is well-spent.

Ask the lawyer: (1) How many cases he has actually tried; (2) Where, and (3) What the results were. Ask the lawyer how many cases his firm has handled and what types of diseases were involved. Ask the lawyer if he intends to actually handle your case personally or if he is simply going to refer your case to another law firm in exchange for a portion of the fee. If a lawyer cannot honestly tell you he has tried several cases, that he will be involved in your case, and that his firm has relevant experience, you might want to consider a different lawyer.