New York Asbestos Litigation
In New York, mesothelioma and lung cancer patients can seek compensation with the help of a dedicated mesothelioma lawyer. The exposure to asbestos is often the cause of these kinds of diseases; symptoms may develop for years before they appear.
Judges who oversee the caseload of NYCAL have crafted a pattern that favors plaintiffs. Recent rulings could further undermine the rights of defendants.
Upstate New York Asbestos Litigation Dockets
Asbestos litigation is much different from the typical personal injury lawsuit. These cases include multiple defendants (companies being sued) as well as multiple law offices representing plaintiffs, as well as multiple expert witnesses. These cases are often focused on specific work sites because asbestos was used to create a variety products and many workers were exposed to asbestos during their work. Asbestos sufferers often develop serious illnesses like mesothelioma or lung cancer.
New York has its own unique way of dealing with asbestos litigation. In fact, it's one of the largest dockets across the nation. It is administered by a specific Case Management Order. This CMO was designed to manage asbestos cases involving many defendants. The judges who are part of the NYCAL docket have extensive experience in asbestos cases. The docket is also the scene of some of the largest plaintiff verdicts in the past.
New York Court of Appeals has made major changes to the NYCAL docket last week. In 2015, the political establishment in Albany was shaken to its core when the former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver was convicted on federal corruption charges. He had been accused of destroying every reasonable crafted tort reform bill in the legislature for more than a decade while working for the plaintiffs firm Weitz & Luxenberg.
Justice Sherry Klein Heitler, the long-time head of the NYCAL docket, was dismissed in April 2014 amidst reports that she had given the Weitz & Luxenberg law firm "red-carpet treatment." She was replaced by Justice Peter Moulton, who made a variety of changes to the docket.
Moulton instituted a new rule for the NYCAL docket that requires defendants to provide evidence that their products are not the cause of mesothelioma of plaintiffs. He also implemented new rules that stipulated that he would not dismiss cases until the expert witness testimony had been completed. This new policy may have significant effects on the speed of discovery in cases on the NYCAL docket and could lead to an outcome that is more favorable to defendants.
In other New York asbestos news, an federal judge in the Eastern District of Virginia recently dismissed MDL 875 and ordered all asbestos cases in the future to be transferred to another district. This will hopefully result in more uniform and efficient handling of these cases because the MDL currently MDL has earned reputation for abuse of discovery in the past, unjustified sanctions, and low evidentiary requirements.
Central New York Asbestos Litigation Dockets
After years of mismanagement and corruption by the former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, the scandals concerning his ties to asbestos lawyers have finally attracted the attention of New York City's asbestos docket that is rigged. Justice Peter Moulton is now the head of NYCAL and has already held a town hall with defense attorneys to hear complaints about a "rigged" system that favors one mighty asbestos law firm.
Asbestos lawsuits differ from a typical personal injury lawsuit, as it involves many of the same plaintiffs and defendants. Asbestos litigation also involves similar job sites where a lot of people were exposed to asbestos, resulting to mesothelioma and lung cancer. This can result in large case verdicts, which can clog the courts dockets.
To combat this issue, several states have passed laws that limit the types of claims that can be filed. These laws usually deal with issues such as medical criteria, two-disease rules expedited case scheduling, joinders, forum shopping, consequential damages, and successor liability.
Despite these laws some states continue see a high number of asbestos lawsuits. Certain courts have created special "asbestos Dockets" to help reduce the number and accelerate the resolution of these cases. These dockets follow different rules specifically designed for asbestos cases. The New York City asbestos court for instance, requires applicants to meet certain medical criteria as well as has two-disease rules. It also uses an accelerated schedule.
Certain states have also enacted laws that restrict the amount of punitive damages that can be awarded in asbestos cases. These laws are meant to stop bad behavior and allow for greater compensation to the victims. You should speak with an New York Mesothelioma Lawyer regardless of whether you decide to file your case in state or federal courts to learn about the laws applicable to your particular situation.
Alfred Sargente concentrates his practice in toxic tort and environment litigation, product liability and commercial litigation. He also handles general liability issues. He has a wealth of experience the defense of clients against claims of exposure to asbestos, lead and World Trade Center Dust in both New York City and New Jersey. He defends clients regularly against claims claiming exposure to many other hazardous substances and contaminants such as solvents and chemical and noise, mold, vibration and environmental toxics.
Southern New York Asbestos Litigation Dockets
New York has seen thousands of deaths due to asbestos exposure. Across five counties, mesothelioma victims and their loved ones have filed lawsuits against the manufacturers of asbestos-based products in order to receive compensation. Mesothelioma lawsuits that succeed hold negligent asbestos companies accountable for their reckless decisions to place profits over public safety.
New York mesothelioma lawyers are skilled in representing clients from different backgrounds against the nation's largest asbestos manufacturers. Their legal strategies can result in a favorable settlement or trial verdict.
Asbestos litigation has a long-standing history in New York, and continues to be the subject of news. According to the 2022 national report on mesothelioma claim filings by KCIC, New York is the third most popular state in which to file a mesothelioma suit after California and Pennsylvania.
The judicial system of the state is shaken by the flurry of asbestos lawsuits. In 2015 the former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver was convicted on federal corruption charges that were linked to the millions of dollars of referral fees he earned from the politically powerful plaintiffs law firm Weitz & Luxenberg from handling asbestos cases. After the scandal, Justice Sherry Klein Heitler who had been the head of NYCAL since 2008, was fired amid reports that she gave "red-carpet treatment" to Weitz & Luxenberg asbestos lawsuits.
Justice Heitler was succeeded as NYCAL judge by Justice Peter Moulton, who has clarified that defendants cannot obtain summary judgment unless they have a "scientifically solid credible, admissible and reliable scientific study" that proves the exposure of a plaintiff was not enough to cause mesothelioma. This eliminates the likelihood that NYCAL defendants will be able to obtain summary judgment.
Justice Moulton also ruled that the plaintiff must show injury to their health as a result of asbestos exposure to be able for the judge to award compensatory damages. This ruling, in combination with a decision in early 2016 that held that medical monitoring is not a tort claim makes it virtually impossible for asbestos defense lawyers to win a NYCAL summary judgment motion.
In the most recent case, which Judge Toal presided over, a mesothelioma suit filed against DOVER Green, the company is accused of violating asbestos work practices regulations when it renovated Manhattan campus buildings in October 2013 to raise funds for a fundraiser. The lawsuit asserts that DOVER GREENS did not follow CAA and Asbestos NESHAP requirements by failing to check the campus; inform EPA prior to beginning renovations; appropriately remove, store, and dispose of asbestos; and have a trained representative present during renovation activities.
Eastern New York Asbestos Litigation Dockets
Asbestos-related personal death and injury cases filled up federal court dockets and judges' judicial resources were depleted, making it impossible for them to address criminal matters or crucial civil disputes. This bloated litigation impeded the timely compensation of deserving victims, irritated innocent families, and caused companies to invest huge amounts of money and resources for defense of these cases.
Asbestos claims are filed by people diagnosed with mesothelioma or other asbestos-related illnesses after being exposed to asbestos in their work environment. The majority of asbestos claims are filed by construction workers, shipyard workers, and other tradesmen working on buildings constructed or that contain asbestos lawsuit-containing materials. These workers were exposed asbestos fibers that could be harmful during the manufacturing process or while working on the structure itself.
asbestos lawyer (https://wifidb.Science/wiki/10_myths_your_boss_is_spreading_about_mesothelioma_asbestos_lung_cancer) litigation was the first mass tort. In the late 1970s to the early 1980s, asbestos exposure triggered an explosion of personal injury and wrongful deaths lawsuits. This was the case in both state and federal courts across the country.
These lawsuits are brought by plaintiffs who claim that their ailments were the result of negligent manufacturing of asbestos attorneys products. They claim that the companies did not to warn them about the dangers of asbestos exposure. More than half of asbestos lawsuits are filed in federal courts.
In the early 1990s recognizing that the litigation was a "terrible congestion of the calendar," District Judge Jack B. Weinstein and New York Supreme Court justice Helen Freedman consolidated hundreds of state and federal cases that alleged asbestos exposure at the Brooklyn Navy Yard for settlement or pretrial purposes. Under the supervision of the Special Master, Judge Weinstein and Justice Freedman consolidated these cases, referred to as Brooklyn Navy Yard consolidation.
Many of the defendants had been involved in other asbestos claims. The defendants listed included Garlock, Inc; H & A Construction Company, individually and as successor to Spraycraft Corporation; CRH, Inc., as the successor to E.I. Dupont; W.R. Grace and Company; Empire-Ace Insulation Manufacturing Company; Bell/Atlas Asbestos Corp.; and DNS Metal Industries, Inc.