by Nancy Meredith
Mesothelioma is a tragic disease on many levels – it's tragic that the disease is entirely preventable and equally tragic that, once diagnosed, victims of the disease typically live less than two years. Mesothelioma is directly linked with exposure to asbestos, which often occurs on the job.
Many of the companies where workers were exposed to this deadly product were fully aware they were endangering their employees, but did nothing to prevent the exposure. The companies' knowledge prompted workers sickened by asbestos to sue companies for negligence, with the first case filed in 1929.
Today, asbestos litigation is the longest running mass tort in U.S. history. Thousands of people have filed lawsuits against corporate defendants over mesothelioma, asbestosis or other asbestos-related diseases.
Mesothelioma lawsuits have been met with mixed reactions from the public, politicians and legal analysts alike. Some politicians, pressured by corporate lobbyists, are asking for caps to be placed on the damages awarded for asbestos claims. Others are siding with legal experts, claiming the victims deserve the maximum awards available to compensate them and their families for the suffering they have endured.
Regardless of the ongoing debate, mesothelioma lawsuits are a very real part of the justice system. In fact, according to an article in Sunday's LA Times, "today, asbestos cases constitute the largest body of mass tort litigation in the U.S. And it's a monstrosity."
Mesothelioma Victim Dies During California Lawsuit Trial
Unfortunately, as the article points out, some of the lawyers defending the corporations may be prolonging litigation, leading to lower payouts after victims die. This is yet another tragedy of mesothelioma – the victims of the disease also become victims of legal wrangling.
In the article, author Michael Hiltzik points to a recent mesothelioma case where John Johnson of California, gravely ill with mesothelioma, was forced to sit through over 25 hours of depositions by the defendants' legal team. When the initial 20 hours were depleted, the defendants requested an additional five hours, over the "plaintiffs strenuous objections," according to the article. Johnson answered every question asked of him, all while his health rapidly declined. Johnson died one day after completing his testimony.
Upon Johnson's death, any claims for pain and suffering, mental anguish and bodily disfigurement were voided, and his widow became eligible for medical bills, lost wages and loss of his companionship only. Hiltzik notes that adds up to less than 70% of the original claim.
Can Lawyers Be to Blame for the Plaintiff's Death?
In the plaintiff's Notice of Motion to keep the originally scheduled court date of March 26, and to establish Johnson's widow as the new plaintiff, the lawyers wrote the "defense counsel's time wasting & delay tactic and stalling strategy… accelerated decedent death to near the moment that their additional deposition concluded."
The plaintiff's legal team further claimed the"defendants wasted valuable time asking an abundance of questions that defendants already knew the answer to because the information was provided in medical records of plaintiff, responses to standard interrogatories, and his direct testimony and included delaying questions."
Did the legal system contribute in some measure to Johnson's death? Johnson's lawyers, doctor and widow think so.
"We tried to keep faith with the law, because that's what you had to do to get justice for his excruciating pain. And that's what accelerated his death. I don't understand how the justice system can work like that," said Johnson's wife to Hiltzik, as quoted in the article.
"You can tell when a lawyer is smelling death — they were pounding him with the same questions over and over again," said Robert B. Cameron of UCLA Medical School and Johnson's thoracic surgeon.
However, the defendants' lawyers disagree.
"Anybody who gets sued for millions or tens of millions of dollars has the right to defend themselves," says Robert E. Thackston, a Dallas product liability lawyer whose firm represents several defendants in the Johnson case. "To say they're not entitled to go ask these questions because the guy is sick is really not fair."
Legal Teams Will Fight for the Victims
Each state's laws are different. Johnson's case, tried in California, may be different from cases heard in other states. For that reason, it is critical to secure an experienced mesothelioma lawyer.
Law firms such as Belluck & Fox, a New York law firm that represents victims of asbestos disease and mesothelioma throughout New York State, make every effort to move mesothelioma victim's cases along as quickly as possible. Those lawyers realize that for anyone diagnosed with mesothelioma or lung cancer, time is short and they will petition the courts to resolve the case within one year – or shorter if the patient's health is fragile.
Belluck & Fox has won several major personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits involving injuries from asbestos exposure. In August, the firm secured two separate mesothelioma verdicts in the Supreme Court of New York, New York County, which resulted in more than $51 million in combined damages.
