Archive for category Asbestos Legal Help

Noted doctor calls for worldwide ban on asbestos usage

Posted by John in Asbestos Legal Help on August 29, 2010

A noted doctor and his colleagues from the Collegium Ramazzini have thrown their support behind a global asbestos-usage ban in order to decrease the number of mesothelioma and asbestos cancer diagnoses around the world.

Along with other Fellows of the independent, international academy that is the home to 180 renowned experts in occupational and environmental health, Dr. Joseph LaDou recently stated that a worldwide ban on asbestos was needed in order to see a significant decline in diseases that have been linked to the fiber.

“All asbestos-related diseases are preventable if asbestos is banned globally,” he said, according to an article in Environmental Protection.

Currently 52 countries have banned asbestos usage within their borders. The United States is among the countries that have not yet enacted a ban on the fibers.

According to EP, there are still 2 million metric tons of asbestos produced every year and exposed to more than 125 million people who work at companies that deal with the substance on a regular basis. Still more likely interact with asbestos in their homes where the fibers were used during its construction as a fire retardant.

For those who have been diagnosed with mesothelioma cancer that can be linked to asbestos exposure caused by a product or former employer, you may be entitled to financial compensation. Contact an experienced mesothelioma attorney to learn more about your rights, and to see if pursuing a mesothelioma settlement is in your best interest.

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Putting a human face on the California serpentine asbestos debate

Posted by Katy in Asbestos Exposure, Asbestos Industry, Asbestos Legal Help, Mesothelioma on August 25, 2010

A debate has been raging since June when Sen. Gloria Romero (D-Los Angeles) introduced Bill SB 624, which would strip the California state rock designation from serpentine, a rock that can contain naturally-occurring chrysotile asbestos.
Does serpentine, or more specifically the asbestos it contains, cause cancers such as mesothelioma as the bill’s sponsor argues? Or is serpentine a fascinating but misunderstood symbol for California’s unique landscape, with no ties to cancer, as the rock’s defenders argue? The debate is playing out across Twitter (where the discussion is tracked under the hashtag #CAserpentine) and in newspapers, blogs, and no doubt gem shows across the country.

No matter who wins the debate, there’s no denying that the story has brought a new level of awareness to asbestos exposure and the very real problem of mesothelioma. And it was a very real case of mesothelioma that started the ball rolling on Bill SB 624.

Alan Reinstein died in 2006 from mesothelioma, a deadly form of cancer whose only known cause is exposure to asbestos. Now his widow Linda wants to prevent more needless mesothelioma deaths by making people aware of the dangers of asbestos. Linda Reinstein founded the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) after her husband’s passing to help ban the use of asbestos and promote awareness. Sen. Romero sponsored the “symbolic” bill SB 624 as a way to continue to expand the debate. The bill is still being considered in the California legislature.

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Three New Yorkers Sentenced for Violating Asbestos Laws

Posted by Administrator in Asbestos Industry, Asbestos Legal Help, Mesothelioma on July 14, 2010

On June 9, three New York men, a father and two sons, were sentenced in a Syracuse federal court for violating asbestos environmental regulations. On October 28, 2009, the two brothers, Paul and Steven, received a guilty verdict for defrauding the United States, violating the Clean Air Act, and illegally dumping asbestos. Lester, the father, had previously entered a guilty plea before the start of the trial. Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral that releases tiny fibers that can be inhaled, and ultimately cause a number of adverse health effects including malignant mesothelioma, a rare and aggressive cancer caused solely by asbestos exposure. Mesothelioma can take anywhere from 15-40 years to manifest and victims usually average around a year of life post-diagnosis.

Paul Mancuso, who had been previously convicted of similar asbestos crimes in 2003 and 2004, was running his asbestos abatement company out of his brother Steven’s law office.  This was in clear violation of the 2004 sentence that forbade him from any connection with the asbestos abatement field. The brothers, along with their father, presented false documents to both clients and the government to conceal their infractions concerning the disposal of asbestos. On several of the projects, asbestos was removed in violation of the EPA and OSHA guidelines and then dumped on the properties of unsuspecting owners in Portland, N.Y.

Paul Mancuso received 78 months in prison, 3 years probation and a $20,000 fine. Steven Mancuso was sentenced to 44 months in prison and 3 years probation. Lester Mancuso was sentenced to 36 months in prison and 3 years of probation.

Click here for the full article.

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Poppies, grizzly bears, redwood trees and…asbestos? The state rock debate heats up in California

Posted by Katy in Asbestos Exposure, Asbestos Industry, Asbestos Legal Help on June 24, 2010

As far as state symbols go, California has chosen ones that reflect the rugged beauty of its wilderness, according to this article in SF Gate. But now some activists are calling into question why serpentine, a rock that can contain asbestos, is still the state rock in the state with the  highest mesothelioma death rate in the US, according to this story in KALW news.

Mesothelioma is a devastation cancer whose only known cause is exposure to asbestos.

Although mesothelioma is relatively rare, asbestos-related diseases such as asbestosis kill about 10,000 Americans each year. This makes the rock problematic according to mesothelioma widow and asbestos advocate Linda Reinstein. “This became more than a laughing matter,” said Reinstein. “This is really a health issue.”

Serpentine was chosen for the state rock in 1965, when asbestos was still considered the “miracle mineral” and the veins of asbestos-laden serpentine running through the California were considered a source of pride, not derision.

Mesothelioma attorneys

Mesothelioma and asbestos are both deadly illnesses that are caused primarily by prolonged exposure to asbestos fibers. If you or a loved one were exposed to asbestos while working for a company and have developed a disease as a result, you may want to consider pursuing a mesothelioma lawsuit that could potentially result in a substantial asbestos settlement. If you think that a mesothelioma attorney could help prove your illness was caused by a specific entity’s negligence, please contact Sokolove Law for a free legal consultation.

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California students unknowingly exposed to asbestos

Posted by Marc in Asbestos Exposure, Asbestos Legal Help on June 15, 2010

In an incredible story out of Merced, Calif., the District Attorney announced charges have been filed against three construction workers for deliberately exposing teens to asbestos at a local construction site five years ago.

The group of high school students signed up for a hands-on experience to learn more about construction. However, instead of the usual hammer-and-nail or measure-and-cut exercise, the students were told to work on removing asbestos from a building being renovated on the site of the former Castle Air Force Base in Merced.

It is unclear from the video whether students were told they would be handling asbestos, but it is likely they were not – as supervisors neglected to give warn them of the dangers of what they were doing and failed to provide protective gear for the students.

A spokesperson for the District Attorney’s office said seven students have come forward, but more have been unknowingly exposed and need to be tracked down. Six more have called the office back since the story has gone public, yet more need to be found.

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