In the past, contractors on construction projects who used products which were defective were not liable for any damage or injury caused by the product which especially affected asbestos claims. They could be liable if they were negligence but now, a legal decision in California has ruled that in certain circumstances a contractor may be subject to strict liability for the products he uses during the construction process.

The case involves Hernandezcueva v. E.F. Brady Co. whereby E.F. Brady, the defendant was working as a drywall subcontractor on a major construction project back in the 1970s. For the drywall joint compounds, Brady used those which contained asbestos and the plaintiff said he cleaned up the debris which contained the asbestos. However, the jury found for the defendants as there was no strict liability, but at the court of appeal they ruled that even though E.F. Brady was a contractor the company could be subject to strict product liability and that it had played a major role in the contamination of the plaintiff by asbestos.

This ruling will likely mean there will be more defendants in future asbestos cases.

If you have been diagnosed with an asbestos related disease, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. Contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP  at  (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation.

At the beginning of October, the California Supreme Court upheld the decision made by the California Court of Appeal in the case of Sherman v. Hennessy Industries.

In this case the Appeal Court ruled that the manufacturer of a product which is inherently safe can be liable for injuries caused by unsafe products used with that safe product.

The case involved an arcing machine which is a type of saw used to customize brake linings. The manufacturer of the saw was found to be liable for injuries caused by the asbestos dust in some brake linings, even though the machine itself did not have any asbestos.

This means that in California, the rule states that plaintiffs can sue manufacturers of safe machines if they sold them to businesses which they knew would use them in conjunction with products which do contain asbestos.

This decision means that those who make such safe products can also to be sued, adding more operational expense, because even though the injury was caused by another company, many of those are now bankrupt following decades of asbestos related litigation.

If you have been diagnosed with an asbestos related disease, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. Contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP  at  (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation.

A California district court recently granted judgment in favor of four defendants in an asbestos case.

The plaintiff died of mesothelioma and his family state he was exposed to asbestos when he was in the U.S. Air Force working as an aircraft technician. They were suing aircraft engine manufacturers United Technologies and Curtiss Wright.

However, the evidence as to which aircraft he worked on was contradictory and the expert witness for the plaintiff said that he would have been exposed to asbestos from certain engine parts such as heat shields, aircraft engine gaskets, and clamps, along with from asbestos dust caused by the vibration and abrasion of aircraft components during the operation of the plane.

The court found his testimony inadmissible as he was not a qualified expert on the issues and stated his testimony did not reach reliability standards.

Without the expert witness statements, the only evidence was a deposition testimony from the deceased which was not sufficient for the claim and therefore the court granted judgment to the defendants.

This ruling shows that the courts need to hear expert testimony which is totally reliable and credible and that plaintiffs need to prove that they actually worked on or with products containing asbestos, and not simply in the general area where asbestos may have been present.

If you have been diagnosed with an asbestos related disease, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. Contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP  at  (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation.

Daniel E. Nelson, a manager of Hoberg’s Resort and Spa has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of exposing his employees to asbestos.

The Lake County District Attorney’s office alleged that Nelson repeatedly violated the California and OSHA asbestos workplace safety regulations when carrying out demolition of structures, and the DA’s office maintained that by ignoring the regulations there was a real hazard to the employees as they were potentially exposed to asbestos.

Nelson was the acting manager of Lake County Resorts, LLC, who at the time owned Hoberg’s Resort and Spa which was being renovated. In September of 2011, an asbestos inspection was carried out which found asbestos present but the Lake County Air Quality Management District (LCAQMD) never received a completed asbestos notification form.

Following the renovation by employees hired by Nelson, LCAQM staff issued a violation notice having seen large piles of debris on the property which had not been checked for asbestos.

Having pleaded guilty Nelson will have three years’ probation including 60 days in jail, 340 hours of community service, a $5,000 fine and he must also pay $20,000 to the Lakeside Health Clinic of Lake County which will be used for health screenings for potential victims in the case.

If you have been diagnosed with an asbestos related disease, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. Contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP  at  (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation.

Three men who are former executives of Firm Build, a non-profit organization that is no longer operational, have been ordered to pay $1.8 million in compensation to 65 students who were exposed to airborne asbestos after their company directed workers to illegally remove debris containing asbestos from a former air force base in Atwater, Northern California.

Joseph Cuellar of Fresno, aged 74, Patrick Bowman of Los Banos, 48, and 52 year old Rudolph Buendia of Planada have been sentenced to between 24 and 27 months in prison in the case having pled guilty to one count of violating the National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants Law, and no-contest to state felony charges of treating, handling or disposing of asbestos in a manner that caused an unreasonable risk of serious injury to students.

Firm Build was construction training company that was performing demolition and renovation work to convert the former Air Force base motor pool into an automotive mechanic training center in 2005.

According to Federal prosecutors, Bowman, Cuellar and Buendia cut corners by knowingly using students from Workplace Learning Academy to remove and dispose of insulation containing asbestos on pipes and other components without proper protective equipment or taking protective measures, under the guise of involving them in work experience and job training programs.

The $1.8 million restitution will go exclusively toward the cost of monitoring the lifetime health of the 65 people who were exposed to the asbestos.

If you have been diagnosed with an asbestos related disease, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. Contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP  at  (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation.

The family of a crew member who worked for Carnival Cruise Lines has been awarded $3.6 million by a Miami Court.

The Plaintiff was Italian and he worked as an electrician aboard four different Carnival Cruise Line ships from 1985 through 2000. He was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2001 which was due to him having been exposed to asbestos throughout his career.

Asbestos poses little threat while intact, but if disturbed, its fibers are released into the air and if inhaled they can lead to serious and usually fatal diseases such as mesothelioma, asbestosis and lung cancer, all of which can take years to develop.

Most asbestos victims come into contact with asbestos at work especially those in the shipping industry where asbestos is commonly used to insulate boilers, engines and pipes.

In this particular case, the Plaintiff in the case worked in close proximity to asbestos in the engine room and machines spaces and an autopsy revealed his cancer had been caused by exposure to asbestos. The lawsuit against Carnival was filed for pain and suffering before he died, as well as loss of earnings and support to the victim’s family as a result of his cancer. The trial lasted nine days but it only took the jury under four hours to award the family $3.6 million.

If you have been diagnosed with an asbestos related disease, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. Contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP  at  (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation.

W.R. Grace & Co. are now accepting and paying personal injury and death claims due to asbestos, after 13 years.

In 2001, W.R. Grace & Co. filed for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code. They were facing many claims which were primarily due to the addition of asbestos to their various commercial and residential fire protection and plaster products.

In 2008, a settlement was reached and they created an independent trust to pay all pending and future asbestos related personal injury claims. It took then almost six years to finalize the settlement through Chapter 11 and when the company came out of bankruptcy in early 2104, the plan which outlines how they will pay both unsettled and future asbestos claims was put into effect.

The trust recognizes asbestosis and other asbestos related diseases as well as the most serious one, mesothelioma. If a claimant can prove their disease is due to exposure to Grace products, they can then claim from the trust and should contact an attorney who specializes in asbestos related claims.

If you have been diagnosed with an asbestos related disease, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. Contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP  at  (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation.

In October, the judges involved in the Izell case in California have ruled that an $18 million dollar asbestos settlement will stand.

The lawsuit was filed by Bobbie and Helen Izell who alleged that Bobbie developed mesothelioma from asbestos exposure to Union Carbide’s products, which then resulted in his death.

Union Carbide used to be a supplier of asbestos to companies that made and marketed products for the construction industry, until 1985 when the use of asbestos in that type of products was banned. Bobbie Izell owned a construction company and built about 200 homes in California between 1964 and 1994 and often visited the jobsites.

During the trial a memo was discovered which revealed that although the company knew asbestos caused cancer they did not warn about the risk believing that would harm sales of the building supplies.

The Izells were awarded $48 million including $18 million in punitive damages but Union Carbide appealed. Their appeal as rejected by a California appellate court.

If you have been diagnosed with asbestos a related disease, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. Contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP  at  (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation.

Companies which used asbestos in their products have faced hundreds of lawsuits over the past several decades. The majority of these lawsuits have been filed by, or on behalf of, those who have been directly affected by the deadly substance as a result of having worked for such companies. However, a recent asbestos related lawsuit was meant to test just how far the law reaches as it relates to the contraction of asbestos related illnesses.

At issue was the nephew of a man who, several decades ago, used to work with asbestos and bring it home on his clothing. The man’s nephew visited with him frequently at the time and was exposed continuously to the substance. The nephew eventually developed mesothelioma, a rare cancer which is only produced by asbestos exposure. The nephew, in his forties, is now suing Pneumo Abex – company which was responsible for exposing his uncle to the asbestos.

Originally, a trial court found that Pneumo Abex owed no duty to the nephew. But, disagreeing with the trial court, the First Appellate District Court of Appeals ruled that the company would have to stand trial for the asbestos exposure of the nephew. In the ruling justice Stuart Pollak wrote that the case deals with the “asserted liability of a negligence manufacturer to a plaintiff for injuries arising as a result of the plaintiff’s exposure to a harmful substance through contact with the manufacturer’s employee away from the manufacturer’s premises.”

If you have become ill with asbestos related disease, such as lung cancer or mesothelioma, contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP  at  (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation.