Kazan Law announces Mesothelioma & Asbestos Cancer Resources blog
Today is an exciting day for us as we introduce the second major revision of our firm’s web site, www.kazanlaw.com, which premiered in 1998. As part of Kazanlaw 3.0, we’re introducing not only this blog but also an RSS feed, with video clips to follow shortly. I have been a lawyer more than 40 years and have focused my time and energy on representing asbestos victims since 1974. Back then, when I wanted to write to more than one person, we used carbon paper; now I can write to thousands with a couple of keystrokes. I can only hope that people consider that to be a good thing.
I’d like to think I know a good deal about the world of asbestos and hope to use this blog – or am I required to refer to it as a blawg? – to comment on it in all its aspects. Asbestos is a national problem, but also one that is increasingly global in its dimensions. As a lawyer, I of course focus on legal aspects. However, a great deal of my time is spent keeping up with medical developments so our firm can better understand what’s happening to our clients and what their treatment options might be. In addition to developments in treatment, we pay careful attention to developments related to the basic science questions underlying asbestos and how it causes disease. The Kazan, McClain, Abrams, Fernandez, Lyons, Greenwood, Oberman, Satterley & Bosl Foundation, Inc, supports significant medical research in both these areas and will continue to do so.
Anything involving law, especially at the intersection with science, often becomes political, and as a result, I spend a lot of time dealing with the political aspects of asbestos. I have submitted written testimony and testified at hearings of both the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee and Senate Judiciary Committee and have frequently been involved in lobbying efforts on the national level. I am also actively involved as counsel to members of asbestos creditor committees in almost every pending asbestos bankruptcy and serve as a member of the Trustee Advisory Committee to almost every operating asbestos trust that exists to pay compensation to asbestos victims. Our firm represents people from all over the United States and also has clients from foreign countries. I was a member of asbestos victims’ creditors’ committees on two British asbestos bankruptcies, and we are heavily involved in both international and domestic efforts to ban future use of asbestos.
All of these areas are potential sources of inspiration for future postings here. From time to time, comments and observations may be posted by my partners or other people at our firm or perhaps by the Kazan Foundation. Other comments may come from our colleagues who are actively involved in worker health and safety efforts in California and across the country, as reflected by our efforts with WorkSafe!, a non-profit, non-governmental organization located in our building and focused on worker health and safety issues in California.
This is a much more informal venue than our main web site, and we welcome comments, suggestions, and questions. We will do our best to stay current and be responsive. Please come back and see us again soon.
-Steven Kazan.