Paul Tassin  |  August 28, 2015

Category: Labor & Employment

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danger-asbestos-lawsuitA couple from California has filed an asbestos mesothelioma lawsuit over asbestos-related disease they attribute to the husband’s shipbuilding work in the 1960s.

Plaintiff Richard J. says he was diagnosed with mesothelioma in November 2014. He now alleges his mesothelioma originated with asbestos exposure he suffered while working in the shipbuilding industry.

He claims that from 1962 to 1966 he was exposed to asbestos, while working at several different locations on the West Coast, from San Diego to Seattle. These locations included private shipyards and U.S. Navy ships and facilities. He also claims exposure while working in the Pacific islands and throughout Asia.

He and his wife are suing Puget Sound Commerce Center, Inc. and Georgia-Pacific LLC. They say these companies are the successors in interest to previously-existing businesses that Richard says manufactured and supplied the asbestos he was exposed to at the time the exposure happened: Vigor Shipyards Inc.., Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corp., Todd Seattle Dry Docks Inc., Bestwall Gypsum Company, California Western Railroad, and Columbia Valley Lumber Company.

The plaintiffs are also holding the defendants responsible for the actions of their contractors that may have contributed to Richard’s asbestos exposure and subsequent illness.

Richard and wife Marcella argue that it was foreseeable to the defendants that their products would release asbestos fibers into the air, exposing anyone nearby. They say the defendants failed to take steps that could have minimized or prevented Richard’s asbestos exposure. They allege that the defendants acted with “conscious disregard for the safety of ‘exposed persons.’”

Mesothelioma is a cancer of the pleura, the double-layered membrane that surrounds the lungs and separates them from the chest wall. It is fatal, most often within nine to 12 months after diagnosis. Physicians nevertheless use surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy to keep symptoms under control.

In the U.S., mesothelioma is invariably linked to asbestos exposure. The condition takes a very long time to develop. It may be diagnosed 30 to 50 years after exposure.

That’s why plaintiffs like Richard are bringing asbestos lawsuits now over exposure they allege happened in the mid-20th century. Federal regulatory authorities have severely limited the use of asbestos since then, but new diagnoses based on decades-old exposure are still being made.

Richard and Marcella are bringing claims for negligence, products liability, and liability of a premises owner for the actions of contractors. Marcella is bringing her own claim for loss of consortium, a type of claim the spouse of a victim can bring to seek compensation for the harm caused to the marital relationship by the defendants’ actions.

For compensation, Richard and Marcella are seeking a damage award to cover lost income, lost earning potential, and medical and related expenses. They are also asking the court for an award of attorneys’ fees and costs of litigation, plus an award of punitive damages against Georgia Pacific.

This asbestos lawsuit is Case No. 3:15-cv-02664, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

Do YOU have a legal claim? Fill out the form on this page now for a free, immediate, and confidential case evaluation. The attorneys who work with Top Class Actions will contact you if you qualify to let you know if an individual mesothelioma lawsuit or asbestos class action lawsuit is best for you. [In general, mesothelioma lawsuits are filed individually by each plaintiff and are not class actions.] Hurry — statutes of limitations may apply.

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