Finding statistics for how many workers have received mesothelioma diagnoses or are currently living in this country with that rare form of cancer is hard to come by. However, according to the American Cancer Society, there are an estimated 3,000 patients newly diagnosed with this aggressive disease every year.
Since mesothelioma has a long latency period, it’s likely that many of those patients receiving this diagnosis now were initially exposed to toxic asbestos fibers known to cause this cancer a long time ago. In many cases, this exposure may have occurred at the height of a patient’s career in remodeling, manufacturing, the military, or in a number of other professions.
If you have been successful in tracing the onset of your condition back to your employment, you may be wondering about employer liability for work-related mesothelioma. Below, we address what you need to know about this topic.
Holding Parties Who Unexpectedly Exposed You to Asbestos Responsible
Personal injury laws generally allow a wronged party to hold those who harmed them liable for their actions or inactions. Those same state statutes entitle plaintiffs who can prove a defendant’s negligence an opportunity to recover compensation for their losses. This is particularly important in cases where someone receives a mesothelioma diagnosis, as necessary medical care may be quite costly, and this condition often makes a patient unable to work.
In many mesothelioma cases, a patient’s first thought may be to sue the distributor of the asbestos fibers to their employer or the manufacturer that, unbeknownst to them, included this carcinogen in one of their product components, leading to their exposure. While these are both potentially viable options for defendants, so too may be one’s own employer (former or current). Let us explain.
Understanding Your Employer’s Legal Liability for Your Mesothelioma
If you research asbestos exposure on the job, you’ll find countless stories where employers knowingly exposed their workers to this harmful mineral. They did so by either removing warning labels on raw materials or component part packaging. They failed to provide their workers with personal protection equipment (PPE) that would shield them from breathing in these fibers. They didn’t have proper ventilation that would filter out these fibers from the ambient air inside a factory.
The above are only a few examples of how employers may have knowingly exposed their workers to mesothelioma. In instances like these, their liability for your development of an aggressive disease such as this is often easily proven.
Legal Options You Have If You Have This Asbestos-Related Disease
Now that you understand all the potential parties that may be responsible for exposing you to the carcinogen asbestos, you may wonder what legal options you have for recovering compensation for your losses if you can pin them to your employer.
One option if you’re currently working for your employer is to pursue a workers’ compensation claim. How much you’re entitled to receive and for how long will be determined by, among other things, the gravity of your condition.
Another option available to you if exposure happened some time ago and your employer has since gone out of business is to see if an asbestos trust fund was created in their name. This was popular around the time when scientific studies were being widely shared about the dangers of asbestos, and many companies went out of business because they couldn’t find a replacement for it to maintain production. Bankruptcy trustees funded trusts that former employees could tap into to pay their bills in the eventuality they developed mesothelioma in the future.
While the above are two options workers have available to them for recovering compensation once diagnosed with this asbestos-related disease, they may not be the only ones. It can be helpful to speak with a mesothelioma lawyer to discuss any legal remedies available to you. Discussing your potential case with an attorney is free at Frost Law Firm, PC.
