Mesothelioma Lawyer Texas

Texas is number two among U.S. states in terms of area and population. It is however, number one in the domestic oil industry, which is one of the three most dangerous industrial occupations in terms of asbestos exposure. BP Amoco, Chevron, Citgo, Esso, Exxon, Fina, Gulf, Mobil and Shell are just some of the major corporations that own and operate oil refineries where workers have contracted mesothelioma.
Agency of Toxic Substances and Disease Registry statistics indicate that oil industry workers are among those at greatest risk of asbestos diseases such as asbestosis or one of the forms of asbestos cancer, such as mesotheliomaor lung cancer.
Oil refinery workers face asbestos cancer many of the same asbestos risks as those who work in construction and industrial occupations. Asbestos has many unique properties: it is heat-resistant, flame-retardant and virtually impervious to chemical corrosion. Although it is technically a form of rock, asbestos is soft and pliable, and therefore can be used in everything from gaskets to protective gloves.
Petroleum is highly flammable, whether in crude form or in any of its several stages of refinement. The dangers of working with petrochemicals were made tragically clear in 2005, when an accident at a BP refinery injured 100 people and killed 15. BP also acknowledged that when Hurricane Rita touched down near Houston, winds caused “significant wind damage” to the refinery’s insulation, spreading asbestos fibers from the plant’s extensive steam system across the region.
Asbestos-containing products were commonly used as insulation prior to 1980. However, these materials become brittle over time; they start to crumble and release fibers into the air (in this condition, it is considered friable). This is what happened during the hurricane.
Asbestosinsulation was often used to protect the distillation columns, pipes and conduits in these refineries, as well as work surfaces and gaskets that were used in the assembly of various pieces of equipment.
One definitive study was carried out by medical researchers in the U.K. in 2003. This study tracked 45,000 oil industry workers who had been employed for a period of at least one year during the three-and-a-half-decade period between 1946 and 1971. The study included all oil industry employees, including those who actually worked in the refineries and those who were involved in delivery and distribution. Workers in the first category suffered from “significantly elevated” rates of malignant mesothelioma and other cancers when compared to the general population. One definitive study was carried out by medical researchers in the U.K. in 2003. This study tracked 45,000 oil industry workers who had been employed for a period of at least one year during the three-and-a-half-decade period between 1946 and 1971. The study included all oil industry employees, including those who actually worked in the refineries and those who were involved in delivery and distribution. Workers in the first category suffered from “significantly elevated” rates of malignant mesothelioma and other cancers when compared to the general population.
Shipyards, power plants and chemical plants also make up a substantial part of the Texas economy, and all three of these are known to be industries in which occupational exposure to asbestos constitutes a serious hazard.
Power plants especially have been shown to be dangerous to workers’ respiratory health. Asbestos is an excellent electrical insulator, and was used in electrical conduits, wiring, electrical cloth as well as the electrical machinery itself–turbines, generators and similar components.
From the mid 1930s until the early 1980s, asbestos insulation was used extensively in the construction of sea-going vessels. Asbestos insulation could be found around pipes and other steam fittings, and was used in fireproof doors as well as between decks as a noise deadener. A recent study at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland, confirmed the danger faced by shipyard employees in a study of 4,700 people who worked at a nearby Coast Guard facility. The research showed that these workers faced a “small but significant excess mortality” from lung cancer and mesothelioma.
Aside from the numerous industrial exposures, Texas has some naturally-occurring serpentine deposits in the area of the Government Canyon State Natural Area northwest of San Antonio. Serpentine is the source of chrysotile asbestos, which made up 95% of the asbestos used in industrial applications.
The diagnosis and treatment of asbestos-related cancers and other diseases is gradually becoming a sub-specialty in the field of medicine all its own. However, as of the present time, there is no medical degree that is specific to asbestos-related practice. Most doctors focusing on asbestos disease today are trained in oncology, thoracic surgery, respiratory or occupational medicine, or some related field.
Today, between 25 and 30% of all Americans will get some form of cancer during their lifetimes. There are many reasons for this, including the modern lifestyle and the poisons that have been put into the environment – of which asbestos is a prime example. The number of clinics and hospitals that specialize in oncology have increased in response to the growing number of patients.
A search through the Texas Federal District Court Cases for asbestos-related personal injury product liability lawsuits, particularly Texas mesothelioma lawsuits, brings up a list of more than 20 recent lawsuits from 2006 and 2007. The Kimberly Clark Company, the Amoco Chemical Company, and the 3M Company are listed as defendants in multiple cases, but there are a number of other cases unrelated to these companies.
Texas is ranked seven in the U.S. for mesothelioma cases. With mesothelioma mortality rates of 8.19 per million, Texas has a crude mortality rank of 42 in the country.
One key asbestos case in Texas was the case filed by Texas mesothelioma lawsuits in 2000, Pustejovsky v. Rapid-American Corp. In this case, the Texas Supreme Court passed down a precedent-setting opinion that a victim of asbestos may file an additional suit for asbestos cancer if he develops the cancer at a later time. The court’s decision overrules a long history in which Texas courts ruled that people may file only one lawsuit for an asbestos-related injury, even when they develop a second, catastrophic asbestos cancer afterwards.
Another key asbestos case in the state took place in a case filed by Texas mesothelioma attorneys in 1998. In Owens Corning Fiberglas Corp. v. Malone, the Texas Supreme Court ruled held that a manufacturer of products containing asbestoscould be held liable for punitive damages even if it had earlier paid other punitive damages in other cases based on the same wrongful conduct. Given the facts of Owens Corning’s conduct, the court found that the punitive damages awarded in the case were neither unconstitutional nor excessive.
In addition to these precedent-setting cases, Texas has seen a number of important pro-victim verdicts in asbestos cases. One of these was the 2002 case Norfolk Southern Railway. Co. v. Bailey. In this case, the Texas Court of Appeals in Austin upheld a substantial verdict awarded to a railroad worker who had developed asbestosis. The court rejected the railroad’s argument that the lower court was wrong to allow the jury to consider the worker’s fear of cancer when deciding on the damage award, finding that the company had not lodged an adequate objection to the evidence of cancer.
In another pro-plaintiff Texas mesothelioma lawsuit heard before the Texas Court of Appeals in Austin, White v. CBS Corporation, the court reversed a lower court’s summary judgment dismissing the claims of a mesotheliomavictim’s widow against Westinghouse Electric Corporation. The court of appeals found the summary judgment to be improper because question remained regarding whether the Westinghouse-manufactured turbines around which the widow’s husband worked were already annexed to the property at the time of his exposure, a fact important to the determination of whether the Texas statute of repose would apply.
Another important case took place in the Corpus Christi Texas Court of Appeals Court filed by a mesothelioma in 1999. In that case, North American Refractories Company v. Easter, the court affirmed substantial damages for victims of asbestos disease and their wives. The court ruled the evidence presented in the original case was sufficient to prove the jury’s findings of fact and the amounts of the awards. The court also stated that it was proper for the cases to have been tried together and that the punitive damages awarded by the jury were not excessive.
As in many other states, Texas often is forced to consider where a court case should properly be judged. In many cases, asbestos victims who are exposed to asbestos in one area of the country eventually come to live in another state, where the effects of their asbestos exposure become known. In these cases, it can be difficult to determine which court should examine the complaint. In the 1999 case Pittsburgh Corning Corp. v. Walters, the Corpus Christi Court of Appeals affirmed a lower court’s ruling in favor of a widow whose husband was diagnosed with mesothelioma as a result of asbestos exposure. The court held that his widow had the right to bring her wrongful death action in Texas even though she and her husband resided elsewhere; that the lower court had properly applied Texas law to the proceedings; that evidence was properly admitted; and that the evidence presented at the original case supported the damages awarded.
If you are interested in seeking a Texas mesothelioma settlement you should know that Texas, like most other states has a statute of limitations for personal injury claims. Determining when to start the measuring of that time also varies from state to state so you may be best served by contacting a mesothelioma lawyers as soon as possible after a diagnosis is made. Wrongful death cases may also have a statute of limitations and the same or different rules for determining when to begin measuring. Whether or not your action is limited by statute, you may still be eligible to present claims to bankruptcy trusts that have billions of dollars for victims of asbestos.