New York Asbestos Litigation
New York City ranked second in mesothelioma-specific case filings nationwide in 2019. Mesothelioma is a serious asbestos-related illness with a long latency period is the second most prevalent mesothelioma-related case in the United States in the year 2019.
Recent NYCAL decisions are likely to have a profound impact on the defense of asbestos lawsuits. These decisions are likely to result in extensive summary judgement motions focusing on the defendant's fiber/cc test and expert reports putting any respirable exposure under an exposure threshold for ambient conditions.
Expert Testimony
New York asbestos attorneys rely heavily on the testimony of experts to support their client's claims. Asbestos litigation is expensive and expert witness costs represent a significant proportion of the total cost. Lawyers on both sides could spend hundreds of hours in preparation to question an expert, while experts can charge thousands of dollars per day. For this reason, it is important for litigants to study and evaluate potential experts in advance. Failure to do this can result in a failed Daubert Challenge and losing cases.
New York has had a long industrial history. Many workers were exposed to asbestos. Many of these workers have developed asbestos-related illnesses, including mesothelioma and cancer of the lung. These workers can claim compensation from the companies who exposed them to asbestos.
Asbestos suits are quite common in New York and the judges are well-versed in the subject. For instance, the courts speed up trials for terminally ill plaintiffs, and they often consolidate cases to lower the cost of trial. In addition, courts regularly review their discovery procedures to ensure they are up-to-date and effective.
In a case that is notable, Brown v. Weitz & Luxenberg the First Department held conclusory cumulative-exposure statements of plaintiffs' experts did not suffice to prove the causality. The defendants appealed the decision, and the decision is expected to be made soon.
The court's ruling is expected to impact asbestos litigation throughout New York. There are currently mesothelioma-specific law firms saturate the daytime with ads urging victims to bring asbestos lawsuits, promising huge settlements. The specialized litigation has been particularly lucrative for plaintiffs' lawyers who have repaid millions of dollars in referral fees to former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, who was recently found guilty of federal corruption charges relating to the millions of dollars he made from directing asbestos cases towards his firm.
New Yorkers should be vigilant in their workplaces, and communities about asbestos exposure. Asbestos-related lawsuits are on the increase and New York is among the top jurisdictions for mesothelioma verdicts.
Summary Judgment
A New York asbestos attorney can help you receive the amount of compensation you are due.
Asbestos exposure can lead to serious diseases such as mesothelioma and lung cancer. These diseases are aggressive, and they have a long latency time. This means that the victims might not be developing symptoms until 20 or 25 years following the initial exposure. There are steps workers can take to reduce the risk of asbestos exposure and the development of a future disease. In recent years the asbestos litigation scene has undergone several significant changes. The most significant change came in 2015 in which the New York political establishment was shaken to the core by the conviction on federal corruption charges against the former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver. Silver's convictions for corruption stemmed from his shady work at the law firm Weitz & Luxenberg. He utilized this to earn millions of referral fees.
The courtroom politics on the NYCAL docket have also shaken the new Albany landscape. Justice Sherry Klein Heitler was removed as the long-time manager of the NYCAL docket in 2021 amidst reports that she'd given the "red carpet treatment" to asbestos-related claims filed by Weitz & Luxenberg. litigation report asbestos took over NYCAL in the wake of this shake-up. His rulings have made it more difficult for defendants to obtain summary judgment.
In Juni the year 2003, the Court of Appeals dealt NYCAL with a brutal dose of reality, rejecting the cumulative exposure theory that was popular in the litigation, and calling for plaintiffs to establish the causation of their claims with sufficient scientific evidence from their experts. This ruling provides New York asbestos attorneys a powerful tool to defend against allegations that claims are fraud or speculative.
In Reid in Reid Abex the Court of Appeals supported asbestos defense attorneys in their efforts to require plaintiffs to prove a causal connection between asbestos-related diseases and products to which they were exposed. In this case plaintiffs are required to prove that their asbestos-related disease was caused by specific friction materials or linings supplied by the defendant, rather than general workplace exposure to asbestos.
Causation
The most significant challenge facing asbestos defendants is the need to prove that there is a causal link. The consensus is that exposure to asbestos-containing materials can trigger mesothelioma and other diseases. However the law requires that plaintiffs demonstrate specific exposure to the products manufactured by certain defendants in order to be considered valid.
This is a challenging standard to meet, particularly in NYCAL, where a single judge manages the entire NYC asbestos litigation. In the 16 years since Parker, New York courts struggle to apply the rules of the case. In 2016, the First Department in Matter of NYC Asbestos Litigation, (Juni), ruled the testimony of an expert that a plaintiff "regularly" exposed himself to products for friction that contained asbestos was not enough to establish specific causality under Nemeth.
Juni has put a huge burden on defendants in NYCAL and may oblige them to settle their claims for less than they are entitled to. A mesothelioma lawyer in NYC will explain the benefits of filing a lawsuit as well as your options for restitution financial if you are diagnosed with mesothelioma, or other asbestos-related illnesses.
New York state was the second most popular jurisdiction for mesothelioma-related lawsuits in 2019 and handles about 6% of the national asbestos litigation. Around 13,000 people are estimated to have been diagnosed with the disease in New York. The majority of the victims were contractors or employees who were exposed to asbestos because it was used in industrial applications.
The signs of mesothelioma generally don't manifest until between 25 to 50 years after initial exposure. Many asbestos patients are fighting to receive the compensation they require to cover medical expenses as well as lost wages and companionship loss, in addition to damages.
While it is essential to file a mesothelioma lawsuit promptly, it is also crucial to consult with a knowledgeable mesothelioma attorney who can help you obtain the maximum financial restitution possible. Contact a mesothelioma lawyer in NYC to set up a no-cost, no-obligation appointment. Your attorney can help determine if you're eligible for financial compensation from an asbestos trust.
Damages
If you have mesothelioma, or a similar asbestos-related condition, a successful lawsuit could compensate your family's losses. Compensation could cover medical expenses and lost wages resulting from inability to work, home care expenses, mental stress and pain loss of quality, funeral and burial costs, as well as other expenses. A seasoned New York mesothelioma attorney will look into the parties at fault and gather evidence to support your claims. After this, your lawyer may bring a lawsuit in civil court before your state's statute of limitations expires.
The courts are familiar with asbestos lawsuits, and they have specialized dockets to help speed up the process. They speed up trials for terminally ill plaintiffs and group similar cases. Judges who handle these cases are trained to ensure justice and are aware of the higher risk of asbestos exposure.
According to a recent study, New York City is the nation's hub for asbestos litigation. Asbestos-related victims received billions of dollars in settlements and verdicts. Mesothelioma is a cancer that can be fatal caused by exposure to harmful asbestos fibers. It is a rare and fatal disease, but lawsuits against companies that exposed workers to the cancer-causing chemical have led to compensation for victims for their suffering.
These lawsuits are designed to penalize corporate wrongdoers as as compensating victims of mesothelioma or other asbestos-related diseases. The lawsuits seek punitive damages, which are given in addition to compensatory damages. They are designed to discourage the defendant's behavior in the future, and discourage others from taking part in a similar action.
The NYCAL decision gives defendants hope that they can avoid punitive damage awards. Prior to this, they faced the possibility of huge judgments in these cases, with the prevailing theory that their conduct was so indefensible that they should be forced to pay punitive damages in order to discourage others from following suit.
Now, with the ruling in favor of plaintiffs, firms that are named as defendants in NYCAL cases are likely to be dismissed in a significant portion of their cases. Even if they were to be dismissed but they'd still have to pay legal fees to defend a case that they didn't deserve to be in.