Mesothelioma Attorney

Montana State Supreme Court Rules Insurance Company May be Party to Class Action Asbestos Cancer Lawsuit

June 14, 2020 | by Throneberry Law Group

The Montana state supreme court recently handed down an important ruling in a class action asbestos lawsuit against the insurer of a long-time operator of a vermiculite mine and processing facility in the state, alleged to have caused the debilitating health conditions of local residents. The Court’s unanimous ruling will allow the plaintiffs to bring claims against Maryland Casualty Company, to potentially recover damages against the party for causing their asbestos-related conditions.

In her decision, Justice Ingrid Gustafson ruled that Maryland Casualty Company helped participate in W.R. Grace, the operator of the Libby vermiculite mine, conceal “known asbestos risk and worker injuries from workers.” Gustafson went on to write that Maryland Casualty Company “caused increased or prolonged exposure to asbestos, thereby increasing the risk of harm to workers beyond the pre-existing risk created by Grace.”

The case was originally brought by an employee of W.R. Grace in the late 1960s. The plaintiff claimed that he developed an asbestos-related condition while working at the company’s mill and operating equipment at the mine site. With the Montana state supreme court’s ruling, an estimated 800 other former W.R. Grace employees will be able to bring claims against Maryland Casualty Company for its failure to act responsibly.

French Luxury Brand Chanel and U.S. Drug Stores Named in Mesothelioma Asbestos Lawsuit

June 6, 2020 | by Throneberry Law Group

A French luxury brand and two U.S. drugstore chains were recently hit with an asbestos cancer lawsuit by a 65-year-old Florida woman who claims she developed mesothelioma cancer from years of using products marketed and sold by the defendants. The lawsuit names Chanel SA, Publix, and Woolworth stores as the defendants and seeks compensation for her medical expenses, pain and suffering, and other damages as a result of the defendants’ negligence.

According to the asbestos cancer lawsuit, filed in a New York court, the victim developed her asbestos-related cancer from nearly 30 years of using Chanel’s after bath talcum powder products. The lawsuit also seeks to hold grocery store chain Publix and drugstore chain Woolworth stores responsible for selling the products which the plaintiff claims caused her cancer.

In her lawsuit, the victim claims that Chanel SA acted negligently when it failed to warn consumers about the known dangers of asbestos contamination in the talcum powder used to manufacture the products which she claims caused her cancer. The asbestos cancer lawsuit asserts that the known evidence of asbestos in talcum powder dates back to the 1930s and Chanel therefore should have provided warnings on the labels of its products to inform consumers of the risks.

San Diego City Buildings Continue to Face Asbestos-Related Issues

May 4, 2020 | by Throneberry Law Group

Less than a year after being hit with an asbestos exposure lawsuit by city employees, the City of San Diego continues to grapple with the safety of its municipal workplaces and the health and safety of those employed by the city. The latest issues with the city stem from asbestos abatement in buildings owned or occupied by the city, and whether the city rushed both the abatement process and moving workers back into the renovated space before it was safe.

According to local media reports, the City of San Diego began moving city employees into a downtown building with several documented asbestos violations, which were discovered by the county’s Air Pollution Control District in the summer of 2019. One of those violations read in part, “Specifically, visible emissions were found on various floors inside the building that were exposed to the outside air.” City employees began moving into the building at 101 Ash Street in December 2019 — 1,100 in total according to local news stations.

Documented air pollution violations continued even after city employees moved into the building. The latest occurred the day after Christmas, just under two weeks after city workers moved in. While city officials continued to insist the building was safe, public outcry eventually led to those workers being evacuated and the premises closed to the public. The asbestos-related issues for the city continued.

Philadelphia School System Settles Asbestos Cancer Lawsuit

April 6, 2020 | by Throneberry Law Group

The Philadelphia school system recently agreed to a settlement in an asbestos cancer lawsuit with a long time teacher who claimed she developed a serious form of asbestos-related cancer as a result of working in dangerous conditions in the school system. As part of the settlement, the 30-year special education teacher will receive a total of $850,000 dollars to compensate her for her lost wages, medical bills, and pain and suffering of living with the disease.

According to the mesothelioma cancer lawsuit, filed in September 2019 in a Pennsylvania court in Philadelphia, the plaintiff worked in two 90-year-old, dilapidated school buildings with damaged asbestos pipe insulation. The plaintiff’s lawsuit recalls an instance where she came in direct contact with crumbling asbestos pieces, which she claims was one of the instances in which she was exposed to the deadly carcinogen which caused her mesothelioma cancer diagnosis. The plaintiff had hoped to continue working for at least another seven years but has been forced into retirement while she contemplates her treatment options moving forward in order to fight the disease.

Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral and was once commonly used in a variety of industrial, construction, and military applications due to its heat resistant properties and ability to be shaped to fit a variety of needs, particularly in insulation for pipes. However, asbestos is also carcinogenic and is directly linked to developing mesothelioma, a rare and deadly form of cancer which affects thin linings of tissue surrounding vital organs such as the lungs, heart, and abdominal cavity. Mesothelioma is often not diagnosed until decades after exposure, which often leaves patients with diminished treatment options to fight the disease.

Johnson & Johnson Hit With Additional $750 Million Punitive Verdict in Talcum Powder Asbestos Cancer Lawsuit

March 30, 2020 | by Throneberry Law Group

A New Jersey state jury recently handed down a substantial $750 million verdict to plaintiffs during the punitive damages phase of the trial after already handing down a multimillion dollar verdict on the victim’s behalf during the main phase of the trial last year. The four victorious plaintiffs brought their talcum powder asbestos cancer lawsuit against New Jersey-based pharmaceutical and cosmetics giant Johnson & Johnson, claiming the company knowingly sold cosmetics products containing deadly carcinogens.

In September 2109, a Middlesex County jury handed down a $37.3 million verdict on behalf of the plaintiffs after a nearly two-month trial, during which time they were presented with compelling testimony detailing Johnson & Johnson’s decades long knowledge about the possibility of asbestos contamination in its iconic Baby Powder. The cosmetic product is made from talc, one of the softest known minerals, and used in a variety of other products including Johnson & Johnson’s Shower to Shower.

Attorneys for the plaintiffs told jurors how the plaintiffs developed various forms of cancer, including mesothelioma, from years of using Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder. Jurors were presented with internal Johnson & Johnson documents which showed executives knew as far back as the 1970s that its talc-based products were testing positive for deadly asbestos fibers.

University of Hawaii Receives $2.6 Million Asbestos Cancer Research Grant

February 15, 2020 | by Throneberry Law Group

The National Institutes of Health recently bestowed a five-year $2.6 million grant to researchers at the University of Hawaii Cancer Center to examine the role that certain genes may play in asbestos-related cancer and whether certain cell mutations may play a role in the survival of patients. The research team will be led by esteemed researchers Michele Cabrone and Haining Yang and look into the role of the BAP1 gene in human cancer development and cell metabolism.

“This grant adds to our two already funded NIH grants and one grant from the Department of Defense, confirming the leadership of the Hawaii team as the top federally-funded research team in the U.S. to conduct research on mesothelioma, a cancer developed frequently in those exposed to asbestos,” said Carbone.

Carbone is distinguished for his discovery of the role that genes play in mesothelioma while studying a cancer epidemic in remote villages of Turkey. He and Yang further collaborated by studying mesothelioma genetics by conducting studies of families in the United States who have a high incidence of cancer, during which time they discovered a condition the pair termed “BAP1 cancer syndrome.”

State of New Mexico Sues Johnson & Johnson Over Asbestos in Talcum Powder Products

February 2, 2020 | by Throneberry Law Group

On behalf of the state of New Mexico, Attorney General Hector Balderas recently filed suit against pharmaceutical and cosmetics giant Johnson & Johnson over claims that the company knew for decades about the risks posed by using its talc-based products but continued to market the product to consumers. The talcum powder lawsuit further alleges that Johnson & Johnson systematically targeted minority women in its advertising and marketing campaigns of its Baby Powder and Shower to Shower products and misled them and others about the safety of the products.

According to Attorney General Balderas, Johnson & Johnson “concealed and failed to warn consumers about the dangers associated with their talc products,” among which can include such diseases like lung disease, ovarian cancer, and mesothelioma, a rare and deadly cancer which commonly affects the thin lining of tissue surrounding vital organs such as the lungs, heart, and abdomen. The legal action by the state of New Mexico is just the latest in a series of claims brought against Johnson & Johnson, which currently faces an estimated 17,000 talcum powder cancer lawsuits across the country brought by plaintiffs who claim their serious health conditions were caused by decades of talc use.

Thus far, jurors in state courts from California, Missouri, and New Jersey have handed down a over $5 billion in compensation to dozens of plaintiffs who claim they suffered irreparable harm at the hands of Johnson & Johnson. In the wake of these lawsuits, Johnson & Johnson’s long-time talc supplier, Imerys Talc USA filed for bankruptcy under the weight of litigation and its liability for its role in these and other plaintiffs’ talcum powder asbestos cancer diagnosis.

California Plaintiffs Refile Talcum Powder Asbestos Lawsuit to Include Additional Defendants

January 18, 2020 | by Throneberry Law Group

A group of seven California plaintiffs recently signaled their intention to a federal court to refile their talcum powder asbestos cancer lawsuit against pharmaceutical and cosmetics giant Johnson & Johnson in order to include additional defendants who may be at fault for causing their asbestos-related conditions. The federal district court judge hearing the case granted plaintiffs their motion to dismiss the case and include plaintiffs such as Claire’s and Valeant Pharmaceuticals over those companies’ negligence for not placing appropriate warning labels on their products.

The plaintiffs sought the request after the judge hearing the case disallowed the group to make any further amendments to the complaint originally filed only against Johnson & Johnson over claims that it negligently marketed its talc-based products such as Baby Powder and Shower to Shower. The plaintiffs originally filed their complaint in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, claiming that the group developed serious, asbestos-related medical conditions as a result of using Johnson & Johnson’s talc products.

The judge hearing the case allowed the group to dismiss their claims, without prejudice, with the added condition that they pay for the legal fees incurred by Johnson & Johnson in the first iteration of the lawsuit. However, the judge cautioned Johnson & Johnson against “overlawyering” in an attempt to inflate the costs of the case as a retaliatory measure against the plaintiffs. The federal judge himself will decide the total amount of legal fees owed to Johnson & Johnson.

New Talcum Powder Asbestos Cancer Trial Begins in California

November 11, 2019 | by Throneberry Law Group

A California state jury recently heard opening arguments in a new talcum powder asbestos cancer trial brought by a 48-year old woman who claims she developed her serious form of cancer after years of using talc-based products produced and marketed by the defendant. The mesothelioma cancer lawsuit claims pharmaceutical and cosmetics giant Johnson & Johnson knew its talcum powder products were contaminated with asbestos fibers but provided no warning to consumers about the dangers associated with using its products.

Attorneys for the plaintiff told jurors that for decades, the plaintiff was exposed to asbestos fibers in Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder and Shower to Shower and that was the cause of her developing mesothelioma cancer. Johnson & Johnson, on the other hand, maintained that despite the overwhelming evidence showing the company knew its products have tested positive for asbestos, those products are safe for consumers and not to blame for the plaintiff’s condition.

The trial comes just weeks after a Los Angeles jury handed down a substantial $40.3 million verdict to a plaintiff and her husband alleging the victim’s mesothelioma cancer was also caused by exposure to asbestos fibers in Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder. That latest lawsuit is just one of many that together have produced over $5 billion in total compensation to dozens of plaintiffs across the country who claim their cancer diagnoses were due to asbestos exposure from decades of using Johnson & Johnson’s talc-based products.

California Jury Awards $3 Million to Pipefitter in Asbestos Cancer Lawsuit

May 23, 2019 | by Throneberry Law Group

A Southern California jury recently awarded a former pipefitter and his wife $3 million in an asbestos cancer lawsuit brought against a contractor whom the plaintiff claims frequently exposed him to asbestos during the course of his employment. The mesothelioma lawsuit claimed that D.W. Nicholson Corp. exposed the plaintiff to asbestos while performing an estimated 100 contracting jobs at the Masonite Corp. in Ukiah, California.

According to the mesothelioma cancer lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, D.W. Nicholson Corp. installed mechanical, electrical, and piping equipment at Masonite more than 100 times while the plaintiff worked at the site. The plaintiff alleged that D.W. Nicholson frequently exposed the victim to asbestos when the company failed to clean up asbestos-containing debris it left behind and provided no warning to Masonite workers about the risks of exposure.

As a result of years of asbestos exposure from 1964 to 1999, the plaintiff claimed he developed mesothelioma, a rare and deadly form of cancer which commonly affects the thin lining of tissue surrounding vital organs like the lungs, heart, and abdominal cavity. Asbestos exposure is directly linked to developing this rare type of cancer, often occurring through industrial exposure in the course of employment or sometimes secondhand when fibers are brought home on work clothing.