Firefighters reach settlement with city in asbestos lawsuit (January 20, 2012): A group of Washington firefighters have reached an agreement with the city of Everett after filing a $9 million asbestos lawsuit. Under the agreement, the city will pay for any medical tests the firefighters could require as a result of asbestos exposure that may have occurred during a training program run by the city.

Shipyard worker wins Washington mesothelioma lawsuit (January 19, 2012): A Washington ship worker has won his mesothelioma lawsuit against his former employer. Roger Hammet was awarded $1.45 million after a jury found that Sea-Land Service Inc. was responsible for the mesothelioma diagnosis Hammet received after working on the company’s ship.

New York woman files asbestos lawsuit after husband’s death (January 14, 2012): A New York woman has filed an asbestos lawsuit against her husband’s former employers after he died from lung cancer. Carolina Malone alleges in her lawsuit that Alcoa Inc. exposed her husband to asbestos while he worked for the company, which caused him to develop cancer.

Environmental agency files asbestos lawsuit against contractor (January 11, 2012): The U.S. Department of Environment Protection (DEP) has filed an asbestos lawsuit against a Pennsylvania contractor. The lawsuit alleges that Lovett Contracting improperly removed nearly 3,000 feet of asbestos insulation from a commercial building and failed to properly dispose of the materials.

• Tough choice looms for people suing over 9/11 health claims: to apply for gov’t aid or not (December 25, 2011): More than 1,600 people who filed lawsuits claiming that their health was ruined by dust and smoke from the collapsed World Trade Center must decide by Jan. 2 whether to keep fighting in court, or drop the litigation and apply for benefits from a government compensation fund. Although the fund would cover ailments such as asthma, scarred lungs and other respiratory system problems, patients who develop mesothelioma or other forms of cancer are not eligible for compensation.
• Asbestos victim awarded $2M in mesothelioma lawsuit (December 21, 2011): A New York man who was diagnosed with mesothelioma in December 2010 was awarded $2 million in a mesothelioma lawsuit filed against his former employer. Gerald Failing received the verdict after a jury found a materials company for responsible for exposing him to cancerous asbestos fibers.
• Settlement reached in Missouri mesothelioma lawsuit (December 15, 2011): A mesothelioma lawsuit filed against U.S. Engineering Co. in Missouri has been settled for $10 million. Nancy Lopez filed the lawsuit alleging that the company failed to follow proper procedures in removing asbestos from the courthouse where she worked.

• Former worker alleges asbestos safety violations by companies (November 22, 2011): A Montgomery College student has alleged that asbestos safety violations were commtted by several asbestos abatement companies where he worked. Ernest Ojito alleges six companies throughout Marlyand, Washington D.C. and Virginia put workers at risk by exposing them to asbestos while ignoring federal safety requirements.
• British university fined for alleged asbestos exposure (November 17, 2011): The University of Lincoln in the United Kingdom has been fined for failing to take adequate steps to remove asbestos from four of its buildings. The British Health Service Executive fined the university more than £22,000 after it was discovered that officials at the university took four years before ordering asbestos removal from the buildings.
• Asbestos victim awarded $2M in mesothelioma lawsuit (November 8, 2011): An Australian man who was diagnosed with mesothelioma was awarded more than $2 million in his asbestos lawsuit. The Australian Supreme Court awarded Simon Lowes the sum after he alleged that he was exposed to asbestos as a young child at an orphanage.
• High rates of mesothelioma found among Iron Range workers (November 3, 2011): An ongoing study has found 82 deaths from mesothelioma in the Iron Range of Minnesota, up from the 63 previously reported in 2010. Lead researchers for the study have found the mesothelioma rate is considerably higher than it should be for the region.

• Colorado man files mesothelioma lawsuit (October 25, 2011): A Colorado man has filed a mesothelioma lawsuit against companies he alleges are responsible for asbestos exposure that occurred during his work as a laborer and electrician.
• Colorado landlord on trial for exposing workers to asbestos (October 18, 2011): A Colorado landlord is on trial for allegedly exposing workers to asbestos on the job without their knowledge.
• British company pledges free asbestos awareness training (October 13, 2011): British company Expedient Training Services has pledged to provide free training to educate employers about the dangers of occupational asbestos exposure.
• Inhalants may ease mesothelioma cancer treatment (October 12, 2011): Scottish researches have found that administering cancer drugs via inhalants to treat mesothelioma and other forms of the disease may reduce harmful side effects of treatment. 
• Concerns rise over cancer-causing mineral (October 7, 2011): A fibrous mineral, known as erionite, that is prevalent in western states such as North Dakota, Wyoming, Nevada, Oregon, Arizona and California has been linked to cases of mesothelioma.

• Insurers face increase in asbestos claims over 2011 (August 26, 2011): Mesothelioma and asbestos-related claims against the insurance company MetLife rose by 11% over the first half of 2011, according to a report by Reuters.
• Warren Buffett agree to take on AIG asbestos risks for $1.65B payment (August 24, 2011): Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway agreed to assume the asbestos liability of American International Group in exchange for a payment of $1.65 billion.
• Mesothelioma deaths on the rise in EnglandMesothelioma deaths on the rise in England
  Mesothelioma deaths on the rise in England (August 19, 2011): Deaths from mesothelioma and other asbestos cancers have increased four-fold since the 1980s, a report by the BBC has revealed.

Although some have reported that the number of new cases of malignant mesothelioma have fallen in recent years, projections by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Center for Health Statistics show the number of deaths from mesothelioma and asbestosis continuing to rise through at least 2016.

As a result of the rising number of mesothelioma lawsuits, many insurers and other companies who could be held liable for causing mesothelioma or other asbestos diseases have increased their financial reserves. Recently, American International Group announced that it was adding $1 billion to its reserves over its potential asbestos liability.

Although the asbestos industry continues to blame plaintiffs lawyers for the asbestos lawsuits filed against them, these cases are the result of decades of attempts to hide the truth about the hazards of asbestos exposure by the companies who made these products and their insurers. Insurance companies such as MetLife have been accused for decades of trying to hide information about the link between asbestos and diseases such as mesothelioma, lung cancer and asbestosis.

While insurers and asbestos makers would prefer to blame the victims in these cases, their right to fair compensation is one of the few remaining recourses they have after being permanently harmed by the actions of these corporations.

Here are some of the latests mesothelioma and asbestos stories that we are currently following:

Some mesothelioma cases may be misdiagnosed as ovarian cancer (July 18, 2011): A new study has uncovered evidence that some women who were suffering from mesothelioma may have been wrongly diagnosed with ovarian cancer. The study is one of the first pieces of evidence that some ovarian cancer cases may have actually been misdiagnosed cases of mesothelioma.

Libby woodchip contamination reignites asbestos fears (July 15, 2011): An investigation by the Associated Press has revealed that officials with the Environmental Protection Agency have known about the existence of asbestos-contaminated woodchip piles in the town of Libby, Montana for at least three years, but failed to notify residents about their potential danger.

West Virginia couple names 85 companies in mesothelioma lawsuit (July 6, 2011): A West Virginia couple filed a mesothelioma lawsuit against 85 companies alleging that the man received a mesothelioma diagnosis due to workplace asbestos exposure. Vincent and Antoinette Scriptunas filed the suit in Kanawha County in June 2008.

New tests may aid in early detection of mesothelioma (July 6, 2011): U.S. researchers have discovered significant biological differences, or biomarkers, that distinguished blood samples of patients diagnosed with mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is most commonly detected at an advanced stage, leaving the possibility of a cure minimal.

Navy scraps plans to sink four of five retired asbestos ships (April 25, 2011): Environmental officials recently announced that the U.S. Navy has scrapped plans to sink four retired warships off the coast of Maryland, rather than recycling the retired vessels. The Delaware officials say that the decision will not affect plans to sink a fifth ship.

Asbestos worker’s family awarded $9M in mesothelioma lawsuit (April 20, 2011): A jury in Texas has awarded a $9 million verdict to the family of a former asbestos worker who died of mesothelioma. Jurors found that Robert Henderson was exposed to asbestos while working at a Dow Chemical plant in Midland, Michigan.

NJ Supreme Court upholds $7M mesothelioma lawsuit verdict (April 14, 2011): The New Jersey Supreme Court has upheld a $7 million verdict in a mesothelioma lawsuit filed by the wife of a former asbestos worker. Bonnie Anderson’s lawsuit alleged that she was diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2001 as a result of exposure to asbestos fibers brought home on her husband’s work clothes.

Garlock, which is owned by parent company EnPro Industries, has manufactured gaskets, hydraulic components, metal seals and other sealing products for more than 100 years. According to its bankruptcy filing, Garlock states that it is spending $100 million per year to settle and defend asbestos lawsuits filed against the company.

Bondex is a subsidiary of RPM International, Inc. Many of the lawsuits currently facing the company stem from Reardon Co., which was acquired by Bondex in 1966. Reardon manufactured home repair products that contained asbestos until 1977. Bondex has asked the bankruptcy court judge to issue a permanent injunction to shield it against future asbestos lawsuits filed over products that it sold or manufactured. The company had previously set aside approximately $478 million to settle its asbestos-related liabilities.

Because neither Bondex nor Garlock’s bankruptcy plans have been approved, the injunctions sought by both companies to stay asbestos claims against them could potentially delay the resolution of these cases for years to come. Hopefully these two companies and the courts will move swiftly and in good faith to resolve the thousands of outstanding lawsuits before them and bring justice to the many victims of these products.

The case, Collins v. Plant Insulation Co. [PDF], was filed by family members of former Navy shipyard asbestos worker Ulysses Collins, who died in May 2005 from mesothelioma caused by asbestos exposure.

Over a period of nearly 35 years, Collins was employed at several jobs that required him to work extensively with asbestos. These included four years as a boilermaker welder at a Standard Oil refinery and more than 30 years at the Hunters Point Naval Shipyard and Mare Island Naval Shipyard, where he also worked as a welder.

At the close of evidence, plaintiffs moved for a directed verdict regarding the Navy, arguing fault could not be allocated to the service…. They claimed federal sovereign immunity precluded the Navy from being a ‘tortfeasor.’

Although the appellate court stated that “there is no dispute the Navy is immune from liability for plaintiffs’ asbestos claims,” it ruled that “the trial court erred in excluding the Navy from the list of entities as to which the jury could apportion fault.” The court remanded Collins’ lawsuit for a retrial to apportion fault among the Navy and other defendants already found liable by the jury.

While this ruling may at first seem like a victory for plaintiffs, because the U.S. Navy is entitled to sovereign immunity from prosecution, it cannot be held liable for damages, even if it is found to be portionately at fault for Collins’ injuries. Thus, the appellate court’s ruling—like the Texas Supreme Court’s 2007 ruling in Borg-Warner v. Flores [PDF]—ultimately will limit the ability of victims of mesothelioma and other asbestos diseases from receiving full and fair compensation for their injuries.