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Thompsons Solicitors' Asbestos Lawsuit History

Thompsons Solicitors has run, and won more asbestos disease compensation claims than any other law firm. This has been a tremendously important part of our history.

In the aftermath of a 1973 court decision, asbestos lawsuits in a blaze took hold. Thousands of cases were filed on behalf of unimpaired plaintiffs.

The First Case

The asbestos lawsuit texas lawsuit started in a neoclassical house on Trade Street, in Charlotte's Central Business District. It's a strange place to create legal history but that's exactly what happened in 1973. It was at this point that a judge returned to the bench after retirement and began to unravel a decades-old scheme used by plaintiffs' lawyers and their clients to defraud defendants and drain bankruptcy trusts.

Asbestos suits are rooted in tort law which stipulates that a company can be held responsible for any injury caused by a product if they were aware or ought to have been aware of the dangers of its use. In the 1950s, and 1960s, studies showed that asbestos was harmful and could cause lung diseases such as asbestosis, but also a rare form of cancer known as mesothelioma. Asbestos manufacturers denied these risks and continued sell their products.

In the 1970s, scientists had created more precise tests that confirmed the link between asbestos and health. This led to an increase in asbestos-related lawsuits. Borel v. Fibreboard Paper Products Corp. was the first case to gain significant legal recognition. The case was filed in the year 1969 and was decided in 1973.

This case was a precedent for many other asbestos cases to follow. This was the first instance where courts held asbestos manufacturers guilty under strict liability. It was not required for plaintiffs to prove the companies had acted negligently, and it allowed victims to sue several manufacturers at once.

The next significant milestone in asbestos lawsuit history occurred in the state Texas. In 2005, the legislature of Texas approved Senate Bill 15 This law required that mesothelioma and other asbestos cases be based on peer-reviewed scientific studies instead of speculation and conjecture from hired-gun experts. This was a major change in the law and has helped to defuse the firestorm of asbestos litigation.

Recent developments in asbestos litigation include the prosecution of several plaintiffs' lawyers and their companies, under RICO. It is a federal statute that was created to catch those who are involved in organized crime. The courts have revealed a concerted effort to hide evidence, handle asbestos waste, hide documentation and other similar strategies. This has led to a variety of RICO convictions for defendants as well as plaintiffs.

The Second Case

Despite asbestos manufacturers knowing the dangers of their products for decades, they continued to put profits over safety. Workers were bribed into keeping secret about asbestos-related illnesses, such as mesothelioma. Tens of thousands of mesothelioma patients received damages when the truth was revealed.

One instance in 1973 was the spark that ignited a nation-wide litigation firestorm. In the following three decades, tens and thousands of asbestos lawsuits were filed. Many of asbestos lawsuits were filed in Texas which has favorable laws for asbestos litigation.

The 1973 court decision Borel v. Fibreboard Paper Products Corp.1 determined that asbestos defendants can be held liable if they negligently expose the person to asbestos and the person develops an asbestos-related illness. This case changed the focus of asbestos litigation away from the individual worker and instead towards the company's actions. It set the stage for mass torts, which continue today.

The case also established high standards for asbestos victims. This allowed them to recover their full damages from only one employer, instead of many. Insurance companies quickly realized the benefits of this legal method and began to implement strategies to limit their exposure.

To reduce the risk of liability, Asbestos Lawsuit History these cynical methods include changing the definition of "exposure". They also began to argue that the mere presence asbestos in the air did not constitute negligence, as exposure can occur from many sources.

Asbestos litigation continues to be ongoing and new asbestos cases are filed every year. These claims sometimes involve Talcum, a substance that naturally contains asbestos fibers. These cases usually involve women who were diagnosed with mesothelioma after using talcum powder during the 1970s and 80s.

Christine Biederman of the Dallas Observer requested that a court release Budd's transcript of his deposition testimony about the coaching memo in the final months of 2016. Biederman hoped the testimony would provide some insight into Budd and Baron's involvement in the mesothelioma defense strategy. However the trial court rejected her request.

The Third Case

Asbestos lawsuits rose in the following the Borel decision in 1973. The litigation saga continued for a number of years. Many victims suffered from mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases. The majority of the cases were filed in Texas due to favorable laws, and also because the asbestos companies were headquartered there.

The defendants fought back against plaintiffs claims. They hired scientists to conduct research and write papers that supported their defenses. They also manipulated their workers by paying them small amounts to keep their health problems quiet and urging them to sign confidentiality agreements.

These tactics worked for a time. But the truth came out in the latter part of the 1970s when lawyers representing victims came out with the Sumner Simpson papers and the ruthless behavior of asbestos executives of the company. Asbestos companies were sued by thousands of workers who were suffering from mesothelioma and other diseases.

By the mid-1980s, asbestos law firms began to limit the number of clients they would take on. Kazan Law focused on a smaller group seriously ill workers with medical proof of asbestos lawyer lawsuit exposure.

Lawyers fought asbestos companies in their efforts to limit liability. They won a number key legal rulings, including Force v. Director, OWCP (938 F.2d 981). This case proved that the duty to warn was applicable not just to certain products but also to industrial facilities in which asbestos was present. It was later affirmed in the case of Jeromson v. Thompsons Solicitors (unreported).

In the early 1980s, a number of the biggest asbestos producers declared bankruptcy. This allowed them the opportunity to reorganize themselves in court and put money aside for the future asbestos-related liabilities. Unfortunately the trusts set up in bankruptcy by these companies are still paying out asbestos-related claims today.

Defendants also tried to use the exposure-equals-causation rule as a defense in asbestos lawsuits. To prove exposure, it was necessary to show that the victim was at a place of work where asbestos was employed. This affected the legal system and made it easier to identify asbestos-containing products plaintiffs' lawyers. This new rule was the reason for the Baron & Budd's "coaching memo".

The Fourth Case

After Clarence Borel's victory, more asbestos victims were able to win their lawsuits. But asbestos companies began to fight back to protect their profits. They began to attack victims on a number of different fronts.

One strategy was to denigrate the victims' evidence. They claimed that the diseases of victims were the result of multiple asbestos exposures by a variety of employers, and not just one exposure. This was due to the fact that companies employed asbestos in a range of their products, and each product was characterized by its particular asbestos exposure risks. This was a serious attack on mesothelioma victims rights since they were required to list all asbestos-exposured employers.

The defendants also began a campaign against plaintiffs over the issue of compensatory damages. They asserted that the amount paid to asbestos victims was unjust and not proportional to the harms suffered by each victim. Asbestos victims demanded compensation for their financial, emotional and physical injuries. This posed a major challenge to the insurance sector, as every company was obliged to pay out large sums of money to asbestos victims even if they didn't cause their asbestos illness.

Insurance companies also tried to limit asbestos victims' ability to receive compensation, arguing that the insurance coverage provided by their employer was sufficient at the time of the mesothelioma's onset. Medical evidence shows that there is no asbestos exposure limit that is safe and that symptoms of mesothelioma usually appear 10 years after exposure.

Lawyers who specialize in this kind of litigation have launched one of the most destructive attacks on asbestos victims. These attorneys gathered groups of plaintiffs and filed them in large numbers hoping to overwhelm court system. They also created a process to secretly coach their clients to target particular defendants, and they were often paid to do so by asbestos firms they targeted.

While some cases went to trial, the majority of victims settled with asbestos companies before or during the trial. A settlement involving asbestos is a deal between a victim and an asbestos company to end the legal claim to compensation. The settlement may be reached during, before or after the trial and is not required to meet the same standards as jury verdicts.