What is an Asbestos Personal Injury Lawsuit?
A personal injury lawsuit involving asbestos is a claim that the victim or their family bring against companies responsible for their exposure to asbestos. Compensation is awarded for a range of damages.
Bakersfield asbestos lawyers and other asbestos-related illnesses have a long time to wait for the latency. This means that it can take a long time before symptoms or diagnoses are identified. Asbestos sufferers typically file individual lawsuits rather than group action claims.
Statute of Limitations
State statutes of limitation specify specific deadlines for filing lawsuits. These deadlines assist in preserving important evidence and allow witnesses the chance to give evidence. They also help ensure that a victim's claim is not thrown out due to the passage of too much time. The specific time limit for a claim is different for each state and based on the nature of the case. For instance personal injury lawsuits are generally determined by the date of diagnosis, while wrongful death cases are controlled by the date of the deceased's death.
If you've been diagnosed with an asbestos-related illness, it's essential to consult to a lawyer as soon as you can. Experienced mesothelioma lawyers can examine your medical and work information to determine if there's any basis for a legal case. They can also assist in filing your claim with the proper jurisdiction in accordance with the specific circumstances of your situation. Factors like where you live or work in, the time and location you were exposed to asbestos, as well as the location and business that exposed you could alter the statute of limitations in your particular case.
It's important to keep in mind that the statute begins running when you first get diagnosed with an illness that is related to asbestos. The statute of limitations does not start with the first asbestos exposure as symptoms may be delayed for a long time before they appear. This is known as the discovery rule.
The discovery rule applies also to cases where asbestos exposure is linked to multiple diseases or cancers. For instance, a person might be diagnosed with asbestosis and later develop mesothelioma. In most states, a diagnosis of mesothelioma will trigger a new statute-of-limitations period.
If a mesothelioma sufferer dies before their case is settled the case can be changed to a wrongful-death lawsuit. The estate of the victim's victims will continue to pursue compensation. This can help pay for expenses like funeral costs, medical bills and loss of income.
In certain situations, certain states allow the clock to be tolled or paused. This typically occurs when a victim is minor or is not legally competent. This can be the case if a defendant conceals evidence from the victim or their family.
Premises Liability
Mesothelioma is usually the result of asbestos exposure in the workplace however in some instances exposure to secondhand asbestos is an element. In these cases it could be possible to make a premises liability claim against the property owner at the time the incident occurred. Premises liability is based on the notion that business owners and homeowners have a responsibility to ensure that their premises are safe for guests. This means taking steps like fixing unsafe conditions, or warning guests of hazards.
In addition to landowners, businesses who made asbestos-related products and those that provided asbestos fiber in raw form can be held accountable under premises liability. This includes mines that gathered the material as well as distribution companies that sold it to manufacturers to be used in their products. Based on the facts of the matter it could also be retailers that stock asbestos insulation or those who sell directly to workers.
A personal injury lawsuit involving asbestos will typically be based on strict liability or negligence. The former is the result of the injured party's failure to exercise reasonable care to safeguard himself or herself from harm that could be foreseeable. The latter involves the victim's reliance on a company's representation that the product is safe and was suitable for use in the way intended.
There are a variety of important issues in establishing negligence and the strict liability of an asbestos-related claim. For instance the plaintiff must demonstrate that the defendant was aware or should have knew that asbestos was a risk and that the victim's illness or injury was the direct result of this knowledge. It isn't an easy thing to prove given the huge amount of evidence that must be taken into account in asbestos litigation, and the difficulty of showing specific actions taken or not taken by the defendant.
For instance, in Kesner v. Ford Motor Co. and Haver v. General Electric, the court determined that a landowner's duty to protect their household members from exposure to secondhand asbestos cannot be based on the foreseeable risk of harm. This is because a landowner doesn't have the same level of knowledge as an employer about the potential dangers of asbestos brought home by employees on their clothing.
Product Liability
When an asbestos-related victim develops a condition such as mesothelioma, the law generally holds defendants accountable for their exposure. Mesothelioma lawsuits are typically brought under the doctrine of product liability. This implies that any person who is involved in the "chain" of distribution could be held responsible when someone is injured by a dangerous product. This includes the manufacturer, the material suppliers, wholesalers and distributors, employers, retailers and even property managers, landlords and owners.
An asbestos personal injury lawyer can assist victims identify potential defendants and determine the ones to name in a lawsuit. The victims will usually mention the company or firms they believe exposed them asbestos at various jobsites. This could include a variety of insulation companies as well as manufacturers of asbestos-containing products and construction materials, mining companies and more.
Many of the asbestos companies that manufactured and distributed asbestos-containing products failed leaving them without funds and assets needed to compensate victims. As a result, several large asbestos trust funds were set up to pay out claims. A claim that is filed using asbestos trust funds is not the same thing as a mesothelioma lawsuit, but it can still benefit the victim.
The defendants could be held accountable for personal injury claims involving asbestos under a variety of theories of liability. These include breach of warranty, strict liability, and negligence. It is often difficult to prove the causation in cases of mesothelioma because the signs of this cancer typically take several years to show. The patient must prove that the asbestos-containing products they were exposed to led to their mesothelioma, and not a different cause.
If more than one defendant is found responsible for the mesothelioma of a patient, their attorneys may file an application to apportion. This is the procedure that a judge or jury determines the amount each defendant owes the plaintiff.
A knowledgeable mesothelioma lawyer can evaluate the potential value of a patient's case in a no-cost consultation with no obligation. Victims of these lawsuits can be awarded compensation for economic and non-economic damages. In rare cases, victims may also be eligible for punitive damages.
Wrongful Death
Those who have been exposed to asbestos in their workplaces are more likely to developing a disease such as mesothelioma or lung cancer or asbestosis. In most cases, victims are able to determine the location where they were exposed to asbestos based on their employment record or medical documents. Asbestos exposure can lead to financial compensation for the victims. This can cover medical expenses, lost wages and pain and discomfort.
Patients suffering from asbestos-related diseases often sue companies who exposed them to asbestos. They are accountable for their negligence and are required to pay compensation. The compensation can assist patients and their families pay the cost of special treatments for asbestos-related illnesses as well as other financial losses caused by mesothelioma and other diseases.
Mesothelioma patients must consult an experienced mesothelioma attorney about their rights to compensation. These attorneys can determine the potential value of a mesothelioma lawsuit through a free review of mesothelioma lawsuits.
Asbestos lawyers may also file a wrongful-death lawsuit on behalf of loved ones who have passed away from mesothelioma or a different asbestos-related illness. For wrongful death claims, they must be filed within a certain time frame, which varies from state to state. An attorney can assist the estate representative to file a mesothelioma wrongful death claim and hold negligent asbestos-related companies responsible for the exposure of their clients.
Damages for wrongful death arising from asbestos personal injury lawsuits can help families cope and recover additional damages to offset their financial loss. These damages include funeral and burial expenses as well as the loss of income resulting from the lifetime earnings of a deceased and pain and emotional distress experienced by family members.
Many of the asbestos companies that produced asbestos-containing products have filed for bankruptcy. This has meant that these companies now oversee trust funds that compensate present and future victims of their harmful products. Asbestos lawyers can assist clients to file trust fund claims to compensation from these bankruptcy-owned companies. They may also file a lawsuit in court if necessary against other companies.