Houston Toxic Tort, Houston Mesothelioma Lawyer
Toxic Torts / Mesothelioma
Toxic tort cases involve injuries to people and property caused by exposures to harmful materials in the environment and workplace. The last thirty years have seen an explosion in toxic tort litigation due, in large part, to rising public awareness and activism over environmental and personal injuries caused by corporate excesses. Due to the very nature of chemical and substance mishaps, as well as long latency periods, large populations are often effected before the nature and cause have been discovered. Several courts have attempted to resolve toxic tort cases by using class action and multi-district litigation.
Some examples of toxic tort claims include lead paint claims (involving brain damage sustained by infants as a result of ingestion of lead paint chips and flaking), asbestos litigation (involving mesothelioma, lung cancer, restrictive lung disease and asbestosis), dry cleaning solvents (involving brain damage and major organ damage caused by chemicals used in some dry-cleaning processes), pesticides, such as dioxin and DDT (involving birth injuries and birth defects), toxic landfill waste (involving claims for leukemia and other chemically-caused conditions resulting from the irresponsible disposal of toxic wastes), miscellaneous common industrial chemicals including benzene and PCB’s and heavy metal and other chemical poisoning (involving poisoning by mercury and arsenic, among others).
Toxic tort claims rely heavily on the use of expert witnesses and a tremendous expenditure of resources and manpower. In addition, the resolution of toxic tort cases often takes many years. The issue to be resolved by the fact finder at trial is the same for all toxic tort litigation: whether the conduct of the defendant, in the way it used a chemical, mineral or other harmful product was unreasonably dangerous and thereby caused injury to the plaintiff or group of plaintiffs. Paramount determinations to be made in such cases will include the conduct of the defendant, the dangers known to exist at the time the defendant engaged in the conduct of which it is accused and the causal relationship of the offending agent to the plaintiffs’ injuries.
There are four separate and distinct asbestos-related diseases and disease categories, each one developing slowly over many decades after first exposure to asbestos.
I. Mesothelioma
The most devastating of the asbestos diseases and invariably resulting in death, mesothelioma is a malignant tumor that attacks the pleura or the peritoneum, which are the thin membrane linings that surround the lungs and the abdominal cavity, respectively. Malignant mesothelioma is always the result of asbestos exposure.
II. Lung Cancer
This simply involves a malignant tumor originating in the lung tissue, or parenchyma, and is, as with any malignancy, life-threatening.
III. Other Cancers
Workers exposed to asbestos, typically inhale or ingest asbestos fibers into their respiratory and gastrointestinal tracts. Many cancers that originate in the throat, such as pharynx, larynx or esophagus or, in the stomach, colon-rectum, have also been associated with asbestos exposure.
IV. Asbestosis
This is lung scarring or fibrosis caused by microscopic asbestos fibers that are deposited in the small airways of the lungs. Symptoms of asbestosis include shortness of breath, dry cough and fatigue. Asbestosis impairs the gas exchange, that is, scar tissue in the lungs prevents the transfer of oxygen into the bloodstream and, in advanced cases, can result in death. Some persons were exposed to asbestos in shipyards during World War II, as well as in steel plants, powerhouses and in construction trades. Some workers who were exposed in the late 1960′s through the early 1970′s, are just now showing symptoms.
Asbestos-related lawsuits are typically litigated as product liability claims under theories of negligence and strict liability. Plaintiffs can proceed against the former manufacturers, suppliers and distributors of asbestos-containing products that were used at the job site. The main theory of these lawsuits is failure to warn workers about the hazards of asbestos which were known to some of the companies as early as the 1920′s. Additionally, it has been proven that a group of manufacturers actively conspired to keep knowledge of those hazards secret and to disseminate information indicating that asbestos was a safe substance, while counting profits in the billions over a nearly fifty year period. Contact the attorneys at The Law Offices of Pulaski & Middleman, L.L.C. if you or someone you know had significant occupational or “para-occupational” exposure to asbestos.
V. Welding Injuries
Welding joins pieces of metal by the use of heat, pressure, or both. Welding is amongst the most dangerous industrial activities. Among the dangers of welding are fire safety, electric shock, compressed gases, toxic fumes, and personal protection for the eyes, hands, feet, and body. Welding required and enormous degree of precautionary planning because the risks of personal injury from any mistake are extremely high.
These are dangers from the toxic fumes associated with welding. Fumes are a natural by-product of welding, and are expected from even simple welding operations. Simple operations lead to fumes like carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide, and ozone.
Extra precautions must be taken if you are welding metal coated with or containing zinc, cadmium, chromium, copper, fluoride, lead, manganese, or vanadium, because the resulting fumes can cause a condition known as metal-fume fever. Dangerous fumes that are released during welding operations are derived from the following:
- Base material being welded or the filler material that is used
- Coatings and paints on the metal being welded, or coatings covering the electrode
- Shielding passes supplied from cylinders
- Chemical reactions which result by the action of ultraviolet light from the arc, and heat
- Process and consumables used
- Contaminants in the air, for example vapors from cleaners and degreasers
Exposure to welding smoke can cause lung, heart, kidney, and central nervous system problems.
VI. Benzene exposure
Workplace exposure to benzene has steadily increased in correlation to the chemical’s increased use and production. During 1967, there were about 800 million gallons of benzene produced in the U.S., and by 1969, the amount of benzene increased to 1,185 million gallons with approximately 16% of the productions derived from coal. Over 3 million people in the workplace experience exposure to the human carcinogen benzene every year despite the workplace standards that have been enacted over the years.
EPA estimates show that exposure to benzene has affected 50% of the U.S. population through industrial sources. Benzene has been known to cause acute myelogenous leukemia, acute lymphocytic leukemia, and other forms of cancer and leukemia. Businesses have known for years the dangers of the hazardous chemical but still allowed workers to be exposed to the carcinogen. Studies as early as the 1920s found a link between exposure to benzene and leukemia.
For further information on Toxic Torts/ Environmental Law, please contact us.
