There is a terrible disease that companies have knowingly exposed workers to. There is no cure and it has killed thousands. These companies can and will pay for their actions.

From as early as the 1930's, manufacturers and distributors knew about the health risks associated with asbestos. Instead of warning thousands of workers who were unknowingly exposed over the years, these companies hid the facts from men and women who now suffer from incurable asbestos-related diseases, including lung cancer and mesothelioma.

Protecting your rights is our highest priority. No amount of money can ever replace a lost love one or give time back to the ailing. However, having someone admit to wrong doing and pay for those indiscretions can give you closure. Finally, you will have the justice and respect you deserve.

Asbestos is the only known cause of mesothelioma. As early as the 1950’s, manufacturers of products containing asbestos knew that their products were harmful to workers and could cause mesothelioma. Because these companies failed to issues adequate warnings about asbestos and mesothelioma risks, there is a legal basis for acquiring compensation. In almost all cases, a person who has been diagnosed with mesothelioma has the right to recover compensation. If a person diagnosed with mesothelioma has died, his spouse, children or designated person from the will have the right to file a mesothelioma case against the asbestos manufacturers.

Mesothelioma sufferers and their surviving families have been granted awards totaling several million dollars from the asbestos industry. However, most of the major asbestos companies are in the process of filing for bankruptcy, due to the judgments against them. If you are interested in pursuing legal compensation from the asbestos industry for your mesothelioma, you should contact an attorney and act quickly.

Filing a Mesothelioma Lawsuit
If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with mesothelioma, your case must be filed within the statute of limitations. This means that the case must be filed within a certain time period or you will be barred from receiving compensation. The statute of limitations is different for each state, but for mesothelioma lawsuits, the statute is generally one or two years from the day a person is diagnosed with mesothelioma. In a wrongful death suit, the statute is generally one or two years from the day of death. It is imperative that an asbestos lawyer is contacted before the statute of limitation passes.

Before you can file a lawsuit for mesothelioma, your lawyer will inquire where and when you were exposed to asbestos products. He may show you pictures of asbestos related products or investigate the locations where you worked. Thorough documentation is needed to establish the asbestos exposure, along with as much testimony as possible. Then, he or she will file an individual mesothelioma lawsuit naming the offending companies as defendants.

Some companies have been granted protection under bankruptcy laws and cannot be sued. However, these companies have set aside large sums to pay for injuries from asbestos products. They might not be named in your suit, but settlements from these companies may be recovered as well.

Your lawyer may file your suit in a different state from where you or the company resides because the chances of receiving compensation may be better in another state. This will only heighten your chances of recovery and will not increase the cost to you.

Mesothelioma asbestos lawyers represent mesothelioma lawsuits on a contingency basis meaning lawyer is only paid an agreed percentage after there has been a settlement with an asbestos company. If there is no mesothelioma settlement, nothing is paid for legal services mesothelioma asbestos attorney.

Some different types of compensation include:

• Lost income and future lost income
• Current and future medical expenses
• Compensation for pain and suffering
• Punitive damages due to asbestos company conduct

Compensation varies significantly with the average case settling between $750,000 and $8 million. The amount of compensation depends on many factors including:

• The length of exposure
• The products exposed to
• Dates of exposure
• Locations of exposure
• Lawyer or attorney resources
• Amount of documentation

History of Mesothelioma Lawsuits
Medical journals chronicle the first asbestos-related death in 1924. The first asbestos injury lawsuit was not filed until December 10, 1966 in Beaumont, Texas. The defendants were Johns-Manville, Fibreboard, Owens Corning Fibreglas and several other manufacturers of insulation products containing asbestos.

The original verdict ruled in favor of the asbestos companies, but the lawyer handling the case filed a claim on behalf of another client in October 1969. This trial resulted in favor of the plaintiff. The companies appealed the verdict, but the Court upheld the award. By late 1973 asbestos cases were being filed across the country.

The asbestos textile industry and manufacturers of asbestos insulation were in serious trouble. To avoid compensating the many victims of asbestos injury, Johns-Manville filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 1992 while other companies were rapidly being implicated. Owners of refineries and power plants, contractors and distributors were now being held liable for asbestos-related injury.

Some of defendants in asbestos lawsuits that have been against Johns-Manville, Fibreboard, Owens Corning Fiberglas, Raybestos Manhattan, Pittsburgh Corning, Eagle Picher, UNARCO, Celotex, Carey Canada, Amatex, H.K. Porter, Alcoa Aluminum, Reynolds Metal, Texas Instruments, Mobil Oil, Armstrong World Industries, U.S. Gypsum, Southern Pacific Railroad.

The Fibreboard Asbestos Compensation Trust (FACT) was created to handle asbestos-related personal injury claims against Fibreboard Corporation under the Ahearn Settlement. On November 22, 1999, the Supreme Court reversed the settlement. As a result of the Supreme Court’s ruling, there is no longer a Fibreboard Asbestos Compensation Trust to handle claims. However, a new entity called the Fibreboard Settlement Trust has been created to handle the funds that would have been available to the FACT to pay claims.

If you have filed a claim, the claim form and any materials you submitted to the FACT have been transferred to Fibreboard, though most statute of limitations expired in 2000. Contact Fibreboard if you have questions about your specific claim and feel it may have been impacted by this change.