Posts Tagged ‘texas asbestos lawyer’
Tuesday, August 31st, 2010
Commercial insurer CNA Financial Corp. has completed its transfer of $1.6 billion of asbestos and environmental pollution liabilities to a subsidiary of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc.
As a result, CNA said it expects to recognize an after-tax loss of approximately $370 million for the current quarter.
CNA Financial has said the deal eliminates “a significant source of uncertainty” for the Chicago company, which is primarily owned by Loews Corp., a conglomerate controlled by New York’s Tisch family.
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Monday, August 2nd, 2010
This summer, when Kellogg recalled 28 million boxes of cereal, the company was concerned about elevated levels of a chemical in its packaging.
But Kellogg said a team of experts it hired determined that there was “no harmful material” in the products.
Federal regulators, who are charged with ensuring the safety of food and consumer products, are in the dark about the suspected chemical, 2-methylnaphthalene. The Food and Drug Administration has no scientific data on its impact on human health. The Environmental Protection Agency also lacks basic health and safety data for 2-methylnaphthalene — even though the EPA has been seeking that information from the chemical industry for 16 years.
As today’s Washington Post reports, the cereal recall hints at a larger issue: huge gaps in the government’s knowledge about chemicals in everyday consumer products, from furniture to clothing to children’s products. Under current laws, the government has little or no information about the health risks posed by most of the 80,000 chemicals on the U.S. market today.
The information gap is hardly new. Of the more than 80,000 chemicals used in the United States, only 200 have been reviewed by the EPA in the past 30 years. The hurdles that exist for classifying a substance as a toxin under the Toxic Control Substance Act are daunting and prevent the protection of the public. For instance, legal hurdles and court battles have prevented the EPA from issuing an outright ban on asbestos, a well documented carcinogen, under the TCSA.
The TSCA must be updated and strengthened. A greater emphasis needs to be placed on industry to conduct research and testing and to provide those results to the EPA. Additionally, the EPA must be allowed to rely on sound, existing science to classify and regulate toxins under the TSCA.
Tags: chemical health hazards, chemical safety, EPA regulation, oklahoma asbestos lawyer, oklahoma mesothelioma lawyer, pennsyvlania asbesots lawyer, texas asbestos lawyer, texas mesothelioma lawyer, toxic control substance act, toxic substance, washington post
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Thursday, July 29th, 2010
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has ruled that two plaintiffs alleging that exposure to asbestos caused their illnesses cannot have their cases dismissed on summary judgment simply because the plaintiffs’ doctor opined that their illnesses are attributable both to exposure to asbestos and to smoking.
According to the plaintiffs’ attorney, the court’s ruling in Summers v. Certainteed Corp. and Nybeck v. Union Carbide Corp. could impact many cases beyond asbestos litigation by setting the standard of review of summary judgments as a de novo review, rather than an abuse of discretion standard of review.
Justice Max Baer, writing for a majority including Chief Justice Ronald D. Castille and Justices Debra Todd and Seamus P. McCaffery, overruled a prior Superior Court ruling, Quate v. American Standard Inc.
In that 2003 case, the Superior Court ruled that when a plaintiff has symptoms that could arise from exposure to asbestos, as well as from another malady, “‘the existence of those non-asbestos-related medical conditions negate his ability to establish the necessary causal link between his symptoms and asbestos exposure,’” Baer said.
The Supreme Court rejected the bright-line rule implied in Quate — that plaintiffs should be precluded from recovery when their breathlessness and other symptoms could be attributable to diseases, some of which are caused by asbestos exposure and some of which are due to other causes.
Baer said such issues of causation, when backed by “reasonably certain expert opinions,” should survive summary judgment and go to juries to determine causation.
“Under this commonwealth’s jurisprudence, where it is clear that reasonable minds could differ on the issue of causation, precluding asbestos litigants from pursuing causes of action, supported by competent medical evidence, merely because of the existence of competing health conditions, is unsustainable,” Baer wrote.
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Saturday, July 10th, 2010
Montana’s congressional delegation is seeking assurances from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that the government will not leave the asbestos-contaminated town of Libby before its cleanup is complete.
At least 400 people have died in rural Libby from contamination caused by a now-closed W.R. Grace vermiculite mine. Vermiculite from the Grace mine was contaminated with naturally occurring asbestos .Exposure to asbestos can cause a number of diseases in humans including lung cancer and mesothelioma .
U.S. Sens. Max Baucus and Jon Tester and Rep. Denny Rehberg have asked the EPA to clarify its plans for the 3,000-person town. In separate letters sent in recent weeks, the lawmakers prodded the EPA to complete a long-delayed study of Libby asbestos.
They also wanted the EPA’s pledge to return to areas already cleaned if the study shows the health danger is worse than previously thought.
A June report by the Government Accountability Office listed Libby as one of 75 Superfund sites across the United States with health risks that are considered unacceptable. For Libby, that public danger is expected to last through at least 2015.
Last year, Libby became the first Superfund site ever declared as a public health emergency.
Agency spokesman Ted Linnert said the cleanup method proposed for the town park — placing a soil “cap” over what was once a processing site for Grace vermiculite — should be effective no matter the results of the risk assessment.
The cap is meant to keep people from inhaling or ingesting asbestos, which can cause cancer, lung scarring and other health problems.
Linnert added that the first two areas slated for cleanup would be reviewed after no more than five years to make sure the agency’s actions were effective.
Asbestos containing vermiculite was sold as attic insulation to millions of homes across the United States. Locally, in Libby, the material was used across the town in numerous applications including in homes, businesses, baseball diamonds, the running track at the high school and tilled into backyard gardens. Decades of activity at the Grace mine produced so much dust that hazardous asbestos is now embedded in the barks of trees that cover the surrounding mountains.
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Tuesday, July 6th, 2010
An Auburn, Illinois man, has been fined and sentenced to probation for placing Virden, Illinois residents at risk of asbestos exposure when he remodeled a nursing home without determining whether the extensive work would result in asbestos exposures for the residents.
The man was sentenced in Macoupin County to 18 months probation and 90 days in jail. He must also perform 100 hours of community service, and pay $5,000 in fines.
Daniel Merriman, of the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA), issued the following comment on the punishment: “It was a just sentence that takes into account the seriousness of the offense, the hazard that was created and the potential risk to the neighbors and the community.” Merriman also added, “People tend not to take the asbestos issue seriously.”
The Illinois EPA investigated the case after obtaining knowledge that the former Virden Nursing Home was being rennovated without properly inspecting and removing the materials containing asbestos. The owner also apparently failed to notify the IEPA of the toxic material.
These careless actions have put Virden residents at risk for contracting several asbestos related diseases. Inhalation of asbestos fibers can result in asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma , a cancer most typically seen in the lining of the lung.
Next Generation Ministries pleaded guilty to improper asbestos removal, and its Vice President pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor, failure to prove notification of demolition or renovation.
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Sunday, July 4th, 2010
DuBose Law Firm salutes our veterans on this 4th of July. Throughout history the brave men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces have fought and died to protect our freedom. Tragically, not only have veterans faced deadly threats from our enemies, but also from aboard their own ships, aircraft or other machinery.
US Navy veterans who served from World War II through Vietnam faced a deadly threat from the asbestos aboard their own ships. Decades later, that danger has surfaced in the form of asbestos related disease. Of the 2,500 to 3,000 Americans diagnosed annually with malignant mesothelioma, a significant percentage of those individuals served in the U.S. Navy.
From the 1940s through the 1970s, asbestos was used in virtually every area of naval ships in hundreds of applications including: fireproofing, steam lines, pumps, boilers, condensers, evaporators, distillers, turbines, deck material, and electrical equipment.
Aircraft mechanics also had exposure from performing brake repairs on certain military aircraft as well as in the engine and exhaust systems of certain planes. Similarly, motor pool mechanics from the 1940s through the 1970s may have had exposure to asbestos performing brake jobs and other maintenance work on jeeps, trucks and other equipment.
To all current members of our armed forces and all of our veterans –thank you for serving in harm’s way in the defense of freedom and liberty. God bless you and God bless America.
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Friday, June 18th, 2010
James Hardie, an Australian maker of fiber cement building products, which generates most of its earnings from US sales, has completed the restructuring of the corporation as an Irish entity for tax and management reasons, says a Hardie spokesman.
The company, which originally moved from Australia to the Netherlands in 2001, had also become involved in disputes with Australian and U.S. authorities over its asbestos liabilities.
James Hardie, for much of the 20th century, was involved in the manufacture, distribution and mining of asbestos and asbestos containing construction products. With numerous asbestos manufacturing plants in Australia, the James Hardie asbestos product line has been credited as a significant source of Australia’s asbestos epidemic. Australia has one of the highest rates of asbestos-related disease in the world; it is estimated that between 30,000 and 40,000 people will have contracted an asbestos-related disease in Australia (including mesothelioma and lung cancer) by 2020. See American Journal of Industrial Medicine
The company has said the move to Ireland will not affect its commitment to contribute to the Asbestos Injuries Compensation Fund.
For more information on the corporate move see the Wall Street Journal
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Wednesday, June 9th, 2010
Congoleum Ad - 1930s
Flooring giant, Congoleum Corp.’s bankruptcy reorganization plan was approved Tuesday by a U.S. District bankruptcy court.
Congoleum sought Chapter 11 protection Dec. 31, 2003 as a result of its own asbestos-laden floor tiles which it sold for decades. As a result, thousands of asbestos victim claims were pending against the floor tile manufacturer at the time of the filing. Inhalation of asbestos fibers, even from the cutting, scraping or sanding of asbestos containing floor tiles, can result in malignant mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining of the lung as well as lung cancer.
Under the plan, the company will give 50.1% of the stock in the reorganized Congoleum to a trust to pay present and future asbestos victims. The trust will also get approximately $235 million from court-approved asbestos insurance settlement agreements as well as additional asbestos insurance coverage funds.
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Friday, June 4th, 2010
To Kill a Mockingbird
To Kill a Mockingbird is a beloved book. It’s a child’s story, a grown-up story, and a commentary on segregation all masterfully woven together. This summer marks 50 years since the book’s release and almost 50 years since the movie. Its author, Harper Lee, never wrote another book – it’s her one and only masterpiece. There have been real life lawyers like Atticus Finch – the books hero. We should all wish there were more.
Atticus, during his closing argument, gives an impassioned defense of the American jury system. He explains that our jury system is supposed to be for everyone:
“But there is one way in this country in which all men are created equal – there is one human institution that makes a pauper the equal of a Rockefeller, the stupid man the equal of an Einstein, and the ignorant man the equal of any college president. That institution, gentleman, is a court. It can be the Supreme Court of the United States or the humblest J.P. court in the land, or this honorable court which you serve. Our courts have their faults, as does any human institution, but in this country, our courts are the great levelers, and in our courts, all men are created equal.”
Equality, fairness and the right to trial by jury are essential to justice. Access to the courts and jury trials have been the great leveler in the last century for civil rights, consumer protection, the environment, and a myriad of other issues. Think about that the next time you hear the call for more tort reform – the great unleveler of recent years which tilts justice away from average Americans. I know that’s what Atticus would say.
Add To Kill a Mockingbird to your reading and movie list this summer. Delight in a summertime story told by a child and along the way gain a greater appreciation for the importance of protecting your right to trial by jury – a right you might not think about until you need it.
Tags: dallas asbestos lawyer, jury trial, justice, texas asbestos lawyer, to kill a mockingbird
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Thursday, May 27th, 2010
Top Kill Operation
The “top kill” procedure currently underway to stop the massive oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico relies on a common drilling industry material: drilling mud – a thick mixture of specific kinds of mud and other ingredients. The Los Angeles Times is reporting this morning that U.S. Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen confirms the “top kill” appears to be succeeding. While stopping this unprecedented leak and environmental disaster is paramount, the drilling mud used to perform the top kill, as well as the chemical dispersants used by BP, may also be toxic to the environment.
Drilling mud is used routinely in the oil drilling industry to help flush debris out of the hole during drilling and to help cool the drill bit. In order to adjust the viscosity and other properties of drilling mud, various additives are introduced into the drilling mud. This can result in a toxic milk shake. Common toxins found in drilling muds include: asbestos, lead, barium, arsenic and chromium.
Asbestos was widely used as an asbestos drilling mud additive from the 1960s through the 1980s. Oilfield workers that worked on drilling rigs (both land and offshore) during this timeframe were likely exposed to asbestos drilling mud additives on a regular basis as the material was added into the mud system. Inhalation of asbestos fibers can cause a wide range of diseases including mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining of the lung, lung cancer and asbestosis.
Stopping the Deep Water Horizon leak is critical to protecting the environment and economy of the Gulf of Mexico. Hopefully, the drilling mud “top kill” procedure will work. Once this disaster has been stopped, however, we need to quickly examine off-shore oil drilling practices and more regulation is needed over drilling procedures – including more regulation of the use and proper disposal of drilling muds.
Tags: asbestos drilling mud, asbestos oilfield, dallas cancer lawyer, deep water horizon news, drilling mud, gulf spill news, pennsylvania asbestos lawyer, texas asbestos lawyer, texas mesothelioma lawyer, top kill, top kill news
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