December 9th, 2008 CPSM
Case filed in San Francisco Superior Court by Mesothelioma lawyers at the firm Clapper, Patti, Schweizer & Mason on behalf of patient diagnosed in 2006 moves through courts. Initial default judgment of $2,671,000.00 in favor of the firms client removed to Federal Court with trial date set for July 2009.
Frank Ham was diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma in 2006. He contacted the law firm of Clapper, Patti, Schweizer & Mason for legal representation. Mr. Ham worked as a pipe fitter in Nevada and California from 1954 until 1985. He was exposed to asbestos-containing products while doing this work. Ecklund Insulation, Inc. was an insulation contractor that worked on many of the same jobs as did Mr. Ham in the 1960s. A lawsuit was filed in the San Francisco Superior Court in 2006 on behalf of Frank and Dana Ham (Superior Court number 455063). It named a number of asbestos manufacturers and suppliers, including Ecklund Insulation, Inc. The owner of Ecklund promptly notified CNA, his insurer that the lawsuit had been filed and that CNA’s predecessor had insured Ecklund during the entire time it was in business.
CNA conducted a search for the insurance policies and when none were found, closed its file on the case. In the meantime, an investigation by Mr. Ham’s lawyers discovered that a certificate of insurance had been issued by CNA on behalf of Ecklund for a job performed in the 1960s. Ecklund notified CNA, but never received a response. No answer to the complaint was filed on behalf of Ecklund.
All of the other companies that had been named in the Superior Court lawsuit settled for several million dollars prior to trial, thus allowing Frank to seek the best of medical treatment for his mesothelioma.
On June 28, 2007, a default judgment was obtained in Superior Court in the amount of $2,671,000 in favor of Frank and Dana Ham.
In 2008, an insurance bad faith complaint was filed on the Ham’s behalf against CNA by Clapper, Patti, Schweizer & Mason in the San Francisco Superior Court. CNA removed the case to Federal Court and it is now assigned to Judge Samuel Conti (Case No. CV081551SC). At the status in November, Judge Conti set a trial date of July 27, 2009.
Pleural mesothelioma is a terminal cancer of the lining of the lung that is caused by breathing asbestos fibers. Although there is no cure for mesothelioma, chemotherapy and radical surgery have been successful in slowing the progress of the disease. Mesothelioma treatment is very expensive.
About Clapper, Patti, Schweizer & Mason - The law firm of Clapper, Patti, Schweizer & Mason, headquartered in Sausalito, California, has been representing clients with mesothelioma for more than 25 years. Founded on the belief that people diagnosed with mesothelioma deserve the very best, most responsive legal assistance possible, the firm provides free case evaluations to anyone who has contracted mesothelioma.
Posted in Pleural Mesothelioma, asbestos attorneys | Comments Off
November 22nd, 2008 CPSM
Asbestos-based insulation and other asbestos products commonly used in homes and buildings throughout the past are now known to contribute to mesothelioma, a deadly lung cancer.
Today, environmentally aware builders and homeowners are more likely to use non-asbestos ‘green’ alternatives such as cellulose, cotton fiber made from recycled batted material (such as denim), a water-based polyurethane foam and other non-toxic materials. Such eco-friendly products can cut energy costs by 35% a year per household.
Asbestos is particularly deadly when it is broken up during removal, which releases the toxic fibers into the air. The attorneys at Clapper, Patti, Schweizer & Mason urge all homeowners to seek licensed abatement professionals when handling asbestos products and not to undertake removal on their own.
Posted in Asbestos, Asbestos Exposure, Mesothelioma, asbestos attorneys | Comments Off
October 6th, 2008 waterman
Asbestos removal requires adherence to strict federal safety standards to protect workers and the public. Anyone who violates those standards is subject to fine and imprisonment.
Robert Langill found that out recently when he pleaded guilty to removing asbestos in an illegal manner at Patuxent River Naval Air Station in 2003. Langill, a supervisor of a Maryland asbestos removal company, violated state and local laws when he instructed workers to smash transite panels with hammers and crowbars without adequately wetting them down in order to decrease the danger of releasing toxic asbestos fibers into the atmosphere. The broken panels also were left overnight in bags unlabeled as toxic waste.
The mesothelioma attorneys at Clapper, Patti, Schweizer & Mason caution against non-approved asbestos removal because asbestos fibers, when inhaled or ingested, can mesothelioma, a fatal form of cancer.
In the suit, brought by the Department of Justice and the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland, Langill was said to “intentionally violate federal work practice standards established to protect people and the environment from harmful exposure to asbestos.” The supervisor did not report the abatement project to the proper authorities, another violation of state law. Most states require contractors to specify methods and safety procedures of asbestos removal to comply with safety practices.
Langill faces up to five years in prison and $25,000 in fines.
To learn more about mesothelioma log on to www.mesothelioma-attorney.com/mesothelioma.
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September 26th, 2008 waterman
Although Flintkote has gone bankrupt because of asbestos-related lawsuits, public health officials in Fremont, CA are asking former employees to report about any potential impacts they have had from asbestos exposure.
Between 1967 and 1979, Flintkote workers were exposed to low levels of asbestos, according to the Federal Agency for Toxic Substance and Disease Registry. The workers and their families could be at risk because employees might have carried the potentially toxic asbestos fibers home on their clothing or on their bodies. Cancer records and death records for the neighborhood reviewed by State health officials revealed scattered evidence that the number of deaths from asbestos exposure is higher than expected.
A new study by Japanese researchers suggests that people who have ever lived near an asbestos manufacturing plant are at risk of developing mesothelioma decades later. Risk was especially noted among those who lived roughly 1.5 miles downwind of the Japanese cement pipe plant.
Asbestos is not one mineral but the name given to a group of naturally occurring minerals such as vermiculite, amosite, chrysotile, crocidolite, tremolite, actinolite and anthophylite withlong thin fibers that are tasteless and hardly detectable in the air or on clothing. When inhaled they become lodged in the lungs and over time can cause inflammation, scarring and possibly a deadly form of cancer known as mesothelioma.
Asbestos is resistant to heat and fire, and was used as insulation in building materials for years before it was found to be harmful to the body. U.S. Gypsum now owns the former Flintkote site and uses the site as a reloading and distribution center.
The asbestos attorneys at Clapper, Patti, Schweizer & Mason advise former workers and their families to educate themselves about asbestos exposure by visiting our web site at http://www.mesothelioma-attorney.com/mesothelioma/mesothelioma and http://www.mesothelioma-attorney.com/mesothelioma/asbestos.
Posted in Asbestos, Asbestos Exposure, Mesothelioma, asbestos attorneys | Comments Off
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