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As you may have heard, last month President Barack Obama signed a bill into law that allows the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to more easily ban toxic substances, including deadly asbestos fibers. This bill was one of the few bills in recent history that received bipartisan support.

lungsWhile many people think asbestos was banned in the late 1970s, what they may not realize is that the EPA’s ban was overturned a few years later by the U.S. Supreme Court on grounds that this type of ban could not be accomplished exclusively by an executive agency without the support of Congress.  This is not to say that it was unconstitutional to ban asbestos, but rather the way in which it was done was the problem. Continue reading

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In Scapa Dryer Fabrics, Inc. v. Knight, a case from the Supreme Court of Georgia, defendant was a textile maker that produced a product known as dryer felts.  These are the felt liners that are placed on the doors or door opening of clothes dryers to keep the heat inside thasbestose machine when they are operating. They made these dryer felts during the 1970s at one of their factories.

According to court documents, plaintiff worked at this factory from the late 1960s through the early to mid 1970s, and this factory contained boilers and pipes that were lined with asbestos insulation.  Asbestos yarn was also used in the manufacture of some of its products, including the dyer felt. Continue reading

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There is no question that being diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma is about one of the worst things a patient can hear.  For the vast majority of patients, they have very little time to left to live, so it is basically the same as receiving a death sentence.  In most cases, the patient will not survive for more than a period of three years following an initial diagnosis.

senateThe reason for this is because once a person begins to suffer the symptoms – shortness of breath, chest pain, stomach pain, or any of the others = the malignant mesothelioma is normally in a very advanced stage.  Continue reading

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Despite a ruling by the California Supreme Court in favor of defendant in Webb v. Special Electric, the case was still ultimately decided in favor of plaintiff upon remand. gavel21

The state high court’s ruling in this asbestos injury lawsuit involved something called the “sophisticated intermediary doctrine.” This ruling provided an additional viable defense for defendants in product liability lawsuits, such as those filed against makers and distributors of products that contained toxic asbestos.

Even so, plaintiff in the case prevailed.  Continue reading

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We know that manufacturers of products sold in the U.S have a duty to warn consumers of potential risks. This is certainly true with makers of asbestos-laden products, particularly where users are at risk of exposure to deadly asbestos fibers or dust, which are toxic when breathed in. valve

But what duty do makers of non-asbestos products have to warn when there are asbestos-containing parts that are made by a third party but used in its non-asbestos product?

Recently, the New York Court of Appeals – the highest court in that state – took on this issue in Dummitt v. Crane Co. Continue reading

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Two multi-million dollar verdicts by separate juries in two asbestos injury cases in New York resulted in damages collectively totaling $28 million, to be paid by boilermaker Burnham.boiler1

According to Legal Newline, one case resulted in the estate of one man receiving a $6.25 million victory in mid-June, while a second case awarded a man suffering from mesothelioma $22 million.

In both cases, plaintiffs allege they were exposed to deadly asbestos fibers after coming in contact with boilers made by Burnham.  Continue reading

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Most people have heard of Warren Zevon, or at the very least heard some of his songs. Some of his more famous songs included “Werewolves of London,” “Lawyers, Guns and Money,” and, “Poor Poor Pitiful Me.”  Many are aware that he died in 2003 from cancer, but it is not well known that he died of mesothelioma. He was only 58 years old when he died of malignant mesothelioma.  His death also occurred a time in his life when he had decided to give up most his bad habits and live a healthy life. His son said he was living healthy and even taking dancing lessons when he first noticed the symptoms that would ultimately lead to his diagnosis of malignant mesothelioma.

shotThese days, Zevon’s son is taking up the fight to make people aware of the deadly disease of mesothelioma and raise money to find a cure.  There are treatments, but they basically require very invasive surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, and, even in the best case scenario, will normally only extend a patient’s life for a short period of time, but there is nothing close to the success rate we see with the treatment of other types of cancer. Continue reading

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The highest court in the State of New York has just upheld a $3 million verdict, according to a recent news article from The Buffalo News.  In this case, a former employee who worked as a pipe fitter for General Motors Company at one of their engine plants had died in 2011 when he was 77-years-old.  This was before the verdict was ultimately upheld by the New York Court of Appeals. Once the plaintiff had died, his surviving spouse continued the lawsuit in his name, as is often the case due the deadly nature of mesothelioma.

sparks1He actually died just three months before the jury returned a verdict finding several named defendants failed to adequately warn him of the risks of asbestos. Jurors awarded him $3 million in damages, which will now go to his legal heirs, including his surviving spouse and children. Continue reading

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According to a recent news article from the Patriot Ledger, the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) has finally approved an asbestos abatement plan for a church that is slated to be demolished in Quincy.  This is after a month-long shut down on the project so an asbestos abatement plan could be reviewed and approved.

tower-in-the-sky-1148256-mThe plan that was ultimately approved was drafted by a licensed asbestos abatement firm in Boston.  The need for this shutdown, or freeze as they called it, came as result of concerns that asbestos was being removed or otherwise handled in an unsafe manner. Continue reading

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In recent years, there have been a number of sizable mesothelioma lawsuit damage awards. This has prompted oft-repeated refrains for tort reform, questions about how jurors could ever conclude such a sum was justified and lamenting that such awards drive up various costs (taxes, insurance, product prices, etc.) for the rest of us. hospitalroom

Certainly, our mesothelioma attorneys know that these damage awards sound like an awful lot. After all, how many of us ever dreamed of winning $11 million or more?

But what is often misunderstood is that these damage awards are not windfalls. They are compensation for actual irreversible harms – up to and including death. Yes, punitive damages – intended to punish defendants for egregious wrongs – are sometimes factored in. But plaintiffs have to meet a certain proof burden before they can even seek punitive damages and they are only ever awarded in the most serious of cases.  Continue reading

Contact Information
Boston Office
1 International Pl Unit 1810
Boston, MA 02110
Phone: (617) 777-7777Fax: (617) 722-9999
Taunton Office
60 Court St
Taunton, MA 02780
By Appointment Only
Quincy Office
308 Victory Rd
Quincy, MA 02171
By Appointment Only

Worcester Office
43 Harvard St
Worcester, MA 01609
By Appointment Only
Disclaimer – The settlements above are only a sample of cases represented by our office. Each case is different and the amount of a potential resolution of your case will vary considerably depending on a substantial amount of factors. Some case results were worked in conjunction with partnering law firms.

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