A widow has filed a new lawsuit alleging negligence leading to asbestos lung disease and wrongful death.

The plaintiff, Bette F., filed her asbestos lung disease lawsuit on behalf of herself and as a representative of her late husband’s estate. Bette claims that her husband Henry’s demise from lung cancer was a direct consequence of his exposure to asbestos fibers over his 25 year career.

According to the complaint, Henry F. worked from 1955 to 1980 in several places in the greater Chicago and Northbrook, Ill. area. In these locations, he was purportedly forced to breathe in and swallow asbestos fibers.

The widow says that the fibers collectively contributing to her late husband’s asbestos lung disease came from products containing asbestos that were developed, made, sold and distributed by the defendants.

She is holding America Honda Motor Co., Borg-Warner Morse TEC LLC, and Toyota Motor Sales USA Inc. liable in her asbestos lung disease lawsuit.

The defendants are accused of deliberately using asbestos fibers in the production of their wares long after the serious health risks attributed to the substance were known.

Additionally, the defendants are allegedly liable because they failed to warn those that would work with these products that airborne and ingested asbestos fibers posed innumerable physical threats such as asbestos lung disease.

The asbestos lung disease lawsuit claims that the defendants also failed to provide instructions on how to safely work with asbestos-containing products. Henry was diagnosed with asbestos-induced lung cancer, which Bette believes could have been prevented had he known how to protect himself. He succumbed to this disease in mid-April 2016.

Bette is asking for compensatory, exemplary and assessed punitive damages against the defendants. She hopes for a favorable decision on her and her late husband’s behalf that exceeds $50,000.

Lung Cancer and Asbestos Exposure Statistics

Lung cancer is one of the most commonly occurring cancers with close to a quarter of a million American citizens diagnosed annually. Due to previous and current public education campaigns, lung cancer is seen as primarily being caused by cigarette smoking.

While this connection to tobacco use is true, it is not the full picture, according the Center for Disease Control (CDC). About 5,000 lung cancer deaths per year are at least partially attributed to multiple exposures to asbestos fibers.

Because those that have had multiple exposures to asbestos fibers often also smoke cigarettes, former employers and companies that produced asbestos-containing products without providing associated warnings frequently attempt to shift the blame to tobacco use entirely.

Another issue to be considered is the lengthy latency period between asbestos fiber exposure and development of asbestos lung cancer or mesothelioma. The development of either asbestos-related disease can often take 30 years or more.

This Asbestos Lung Disease Lawsuit is Case No. 18-L-193 in St. Clair County Circuit Court, Illinois.