Asbestos Case Victim in the News

Posted on January 8, 2015 by Steven Kazan

Michelle and Paul Zygielbaum

When we took on the asbestos case of Paul Zygielbaum, a Santa Rosa, CA engineer, 10 years ago we worked hard as we always do to race against time. Zygielbaum was diagnosed with malignant peritoneal mesothelioma and the prognosis wasn’t good.

We resolved Paul’s asbestos case. Paul and his wife Michelle generously have used some of the asbestos case settlement proceeds that we achieved for them to join with our firm’s foundation’s efforts in funding mesothelioma research. But Paul is a winner in another important way. Paul continues to survive with mesothelioma.

It hasn’t been easy. He’s had four surgeries in the last ten years. But since resolving his asbestos case, Paul has fought for more than his life. He has become an outspoken advocate for banning asbestos in the U.S. These efforts in spite of his continued illness make Paul a true winner in our eyes.

We are proud that others applaud Paul’s efforts as well. He was just featured in a major news article in the San Francisco Chronicle. The article states:

He is a warrior — not just against his own cancer, but against the asbestos industry that gave it to him.

He’s

And he’s doing it while battling mesothelioma, an almost universally fatal cancer caused by exposure to asbestos.

“I’m having a little trouble right now with an inoperable tumor behind my liver,” he said matter of factly.

“This life has chosen me,” said Zygielbaum, 64. “There is no going back.”

The article goes on to review the struggle over the past decades to get Congress to ban asbestos. I myself accompanied Paul to Washington D.C. in 2006 to urge Congress to make asbestos illegal. But the industry’s profit motive and control over Congress was too powerful to get the legislation through. This is shocking in light of the fact that 60 other countries have banned asbestos and that asbestos continues to kill 10,000 Americans each year.

Although the current outlook for passing an asbestos ban with the new Congress is bleak, Paul remains upbeat.

He believes in having goals to strive for, and so he’s booked a ticket with XCOR Aerospace, a space flight company, for a coming space flight.

“I’m looking forward to that,” he said. “And I’m looking forward to seeing asbestos banned.”

An Important Year For Asbestos Litigation – Kazan Law Highlights From 2014

Posted on December 31, 2014 by Steven Kazan

The year 2014 was an important one for favorable asbestos litigation verdicts and landmark decisions our firm was able to achieve for our clients. Our precedent-setting work will also benefit many other victims of harmful asbestos exposure and personal injury. Here are several highlights:

$11 Million Award in Wrongful Death Asbestos Litigation

The year 2014 started with January’s Alameda County $11 million verdict in a wrongful death asbestos litigation suit (Emily Bankhead, Tammy Bankhead, and Debbie Bankhead Meiers v. ArvinMeritor, Inc., et al.,) against Pneumo Abex LLC.

A prior jury had found that Pneumo Abex’s asbestos-containing brakes were defective, and that Pneumo Abex negligently, intentionally, and maliciously caused Mr. Bankhead’s fatal mesothelioma. The jury valued Emily Bankhead’s losses at $6 million, and Tammy Bankhead’s and Debbie Bankhead-Meiers’s losses at $2,500,000 each.

$5 Million Asbestos Litigation Verdict Upheld for Mesothelioma Victim

In April, a California court of appeals upheld a $5,437,882 verdict for malignant mesothelioma patient James Hellam against industrial-products supplier Crane Co. (Hellam v. Crane Co).

The appellate court held that evidence supported the finding that Crane’s gaskets and cement were defectively designed because they emitted and exposed Hellam to significant levels of toxic asbestos fibers during ordinary use. The court agreed that the jury rightly attributed Crane’s products being the cause of Hellam’s malignant mesothelioma.

The appeals court affirmed the trial court’s award of over $85,000 in litigation costs to Hellam and the following compensation for damages:

Economic damages = $937, 882.56
Non-economic damages = $4,500,000.00
Total = $5,437.882.56

Landmark Victory in Take Home Asbestos Exposure Case

In May, the California Court of Appeal reversed a lower court’s ruling that would have dismissed a take home asbestos litigation case against Pneumo Abex, a manufacturer of asbestos brakes, brought by Johnny Kesner, who was exposed to asbestos dust brought home from the Abex plant by his uncle, an employee there. (Kesner v. Pneumo Abex, LLC).

The appellate court decision was especially significant because it is the first one to limit a previous court decision that prevented the owner of a piece of property from being held liable for harmful take home asbestos exposures that resulted from the work done on the property.

A Precedent-Setting Victory in State Supreme Court

The California Supreme Court rejected Ford Motor Company’s petition for review of a published appellate decision in favor of Kazan Law clients Patrick and Sharon Scott (Scott v. Ford Motor Company). Mr. Scott’s mesothelioma cancer was caused by prolonged asbestos exposure from automotive brakes.

A jury awarded Patrick Scott $1.5 million in damages and legal costs against Ford in November 2012 after the trial team presented clear evidence that Ford knew of the asbestos exposure risks in their products and failed to warn Mr. Scott.

In March, a California appellate court upheld the $1.5 million judgment. Ford then tried to claim that the judgment needed further review because Ford’s headquarters are in Michigan, a state with no legal punitive damages. But in a precedent setting decision for asbestos litigation and other types of personal injury law cases, the court agreed that when a company exposes people to the risks associated with asbestos — or any other toxic substance or dangerous product — in California, a California jury has the right to apply punitive damages law to the case.

Judge Decides in Favor of Case Going to Trial

In July, an old laboratory parts catalog provided an Alameda County Superior Court judge with sufficient evidence to decide that Kazan Law clients James and Louise Leonard could take the next step in asbestos litigation.

Judge Jo-Lynne Q. Lee decided that their case Leonard v. Avantor Performance Materials, Inc., et al., could move forward to trial. At his deposition, Mr. Leonard was refused a product catalog by a product supplier to help him identify asbestos-containing parts he worked with. But when given a catalog, Mr. Leonard was able to provide the identifying information.

Exposed to Asbestos Means Time For a Medical Check-up

Posted on December 23, 2014 by Steven Kazan

If you think you’ve been exposed to asbestos, the time to call your doctor for a check-up is now.

Use Before You Lose Your 2014 Benefits

It’s the holiday season, the most wonderful time of the year. But it is also the end of the year. Whatever health insurance benefits you did not use this year will be gone when the clock strike midnight on December 31. You begin the New Year with a new allotment of health insurance benefits. Your health insurance entitles you to a free full physical exam every year. You paid for it through your health insurance premiums, so use it before you lose it. With most people busy shopping and celebrating, you may be pleasantly surprised to find how easy it is to get scheduled now for an appointment with your doctor.

Get a Baseline Now

Another reason to hurry into the doctor’s office now before the end of the year if you’ve been exposed to asbestos, is to get a baseline of information about your health. Most asbestos-related diseases like mesothelioma have a latency period of 20 to 50 years. This means that people who develop asbestos-related diseases generally don’t become ill until several decades after they have been exposed to asbestos. Although you do not have symptoms now, you should remain vigilant. Talk to your physician about your asbestos exposure. Ask about asbestos-related disease testing. Request a pulmonary function test. These tests results will provide you with a baseline or starting point against which any changes can be measured in the following years. These simple, inexpensive tests should be done every year. Start now so any declines after you’ve been exposed to asbestos can be documented if you should need to initiate an asbestos lawsuit down the road.

Annual Check-ups Are Important

Regular health exams and tests can help find problems before they start, whether it is a disease caused by being exposed to asbestos or a different health issue. It is just part of taking good care of yourself. A medical check-up can help find problems early, when your chances for treatment are better. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says, “By getting the right health services, screenings, and treatments, you are taking steps that help your chances for living a longer, healthier life.”

Try to take the time to get in to see your doctor this week or next week if you can. You’ll be glad you did.

Kazan Law Foundation a Top Donor for Chronicle Season of Sharing Fund

Posted on December 16, 2014 by Steven Kazan

Through our 40 years of practicing law as mesothelioma lawyers at Kazan Law, all of us have seen heartbreak up close. It stays with us. It compels us to give back. That’s why we created our firm’s foundation. Over the last 20 years we have given over $20 million in grants to a range of community, educational and civic organizations, including $6 million for mesothelioma research. This is one way we give back to the mesothelioma community whose rights we fight for as mesothelioma lawyers.

At this special time of year, when the store windows are full of glitter and glamorous expensive gifts, we at Kazan Law are acutely aware that for many people it is a challenge just to meet their basic needs for food and shelter. Seeing the abundance around them and joy during the holiday season makes their lack even more poignant. So at this time of year, we are proud to be listed as a major donor to the Chronicle Season of Sharing Fund. As we did last year, the Kazan Law foundation has donated $20,000 to this wonderful cause. We are proud of the work we do as mesothelioma lawyers and grateful that our success makes it possible for us to help those in need.

The Chronicle Season of Sharing Fund provides temporary assistance to help people living in Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano and Sonoma counties.

Since 1986, the Chronicle Season of Sharing Fund has raised more than $98 million to help thousands of Bay Area families. The Fund offers grants to help families in crisis so they can pay for housing and emergency needs. Through a network of more than 120 community service agencies, the Fund works to identify families in need and provide short-term, critical assistance grants.

Grants from the Fund can help families in any number of ways, such as paying the rent so they can stay in their home, covering a security deposit so they can transition out of a homeless shelter, or buying a wheelchair or other essential medical equipment that they couldn’t otherwise afford. In addition, the Chronicle Season of Sharing Fund supports food banks and distributes nearly $1 million each year to assist individuals and families who might otherwise go hungry. You can read some of their stories here.

How to Claim Mesothelioma Medical Expenses as Tax Deductions

Posted on December 12, 2014 by Steven Kazan

If you claim your mesothelioma medical expenses as a deduction on your taxes, you need to keep records of your claimed expenses in case you are audited. In an audit, you must prove to the IRS that the expenses you claimed on your tax return are valid. Otherwise you may be required to pay additional taxes plus a penalty.

Also be sure to let your mesothelioma lawyer know your medical expense totals for the year so he/she can include them as part of your claim for compensation in settlement negotiations and at trial.

Here’s how to document your mesothelioma medical expenses:

1 Label the sections of an accordion file or separate file folders with the categories of mesothelioma medical expenses that you want to claim. For example, you probably need a section for doctor bills, lab bills, co-pays, prescriptions and insurance paperwork. Any costs you incur traveling for your mesothelioma medical treatment or to seek legal advice because of your mesothelioma should also be filed in separate section. Costs for medical equipment you buy or rent because of your mesothelioma should also have a section.

2 Add your own notes to every printed record of a medical expense when you receive it. Each document should identify the medical professionals who provided treatment for you and in your own words, what they did. The medical terms on the bill may not make sense to you later on. The record should also include the name and address of the provider, the date of the expense, type of expense and cost. The IRS recommends keeping track of expenses when they occur. Include items like receipts, bills, sales slips, canceled checks, credit card statements and records of electronic transfers.

3 Enter the details of each medical bill into a spreadsheet on your computer. You can also set up a paper-and-pencil spreadsheet to track medical expenses. The spreadsheet should include a column for each of the details you have noted on the written record. Organize the columns in a way that makes sense to you. You might, for example, put the date in the first column, then the name of the person associated with the expense, the type of expense and so forth. Spreadsheet applications or specialized tracking software have several advantages over a handwritten record. For example, they will allow you to reorganize the order of the columns and sort the information by a specific factor.

4 Place the printed record of the expense in the appropriate section of your files. Keep the records in order by date within each file section by consistently placing each new record at the front or the back of the file. Occasionally flip through every section to make sure the order is correct and that you put each piece of paper in the right section.

Forced Arbitration Robs Rights of 88-Year Old Beaten Man

Posted on December 10, 2014 by Steven Kazan

As mesothelioma lawyers, we are on the front lines of public justice as advocates for victims of asbestos exposure. Through our firm’s foundation, one of the groups we help support is Public Justice.

Public Justice Director Paul Bland, Jr. recently alerted us to an instance that shows how unfair our nation’s forced arbitration laws are to consumers. When an 88-year-old Missouri man rented a refrigerator, an employee of the renting company robbed him and severely beat him, leaving him to be found three days later. But he can’t go to court, because all his legal rights are bound by forced arbitration. Who would ever expect that signing a consumer agreement about a refrigerator would mean that you’ve lost your rights if someone invades your home and savagely beats you?

What is Arbitration?

Arbitration, a form of alternative dispute resolution (ADR), is a way to resolve disputes outside the courts. The parties to a dispute agree to be bound by the arbitration decision. A third party reviews the evidence and imposes a decision that is legally binding on both sides and enforceable in the courts.

Arbitration can be either voluntary or forced. Forced arbitration can only come from a statute or from a contract that is voluntarily entered into, where the parties agree to hold all existing or future disputes to arbitration, without knowing, specifically, whether any disputes will ever occur.

Why You Should Opt Out of Forced Arbitration

According to The Consumerist, an online offshoot of Consumer Reports, the unfortunate incident described above can be attributed to more and more companies adding forced arbitration clauses to their terms of service.

As a lawyer, I must urge you to read the fine print. Check whether the contract or agreements allows you to opt out of this.

Here are the three reasons why you should opt out of forced arbitration whenever possible.

Forced arbitration takes away your right to file a complaint in a court of law against a company that’s wronged you.
Companies want you to arbitrate because the system has been shown to be heavily unbalanced in favor of businesses — who have the legal knowledge, experience, and funding to put up a proper defense — while harmed consumers often enter into the complicated process without legal representation.
Most arbitration clauses also take away the right of groups of harmed consumers to pool their similar complaints together, forcing each customer into going through a binding arbitration that puts limits on damages; meaning companies can harm large groups of customers but get away with only paying out to those people who are willing to arbitrate.

By opting-out
1. You can still agree to arbitrate, if you would prefer that option.

You can still agree to settle out of court.

For these reasons, it is our recommendation that consumers opt-out of forced arbitration clauses, whenever possible.

Getting Started with an Asbestos Lawsuit

Posted on December 9, 2014 by Steven Kazan

Initiating an asbestos lawsuit can seem frightening and overwhelming. But it doesn’t have to be. Your mesothelioma / asbestos lawyer should take care of everything for you and spare you from the legal rigmarole as much as possible. But filing an asbestos lawsuit will seem less intimidating if you have a basic understanding of what is going on and know what to expect.

Providing Basic Information For Your Asbestos Lawyer

If you plan to file an asbestos lawsuit because you have been diagnosed with mesothelioma, a cancer caused by asbestos exposure, I am sorry. But it is urgent to start your asbestos lawsuit as soon as possible. You can expect to be asked to provide copies of your diagnosis from your doctor along with any proof you may have of being exposed to asbestos. It could be Social Security statements verifying where you were employed, military service papers or even packaging from insulation products in your home. Your asbestos lawyer will be able to help find official records for you.

Pre-Trial Steps in an Asbestos Lawsuit

Your asbestos lawsuit begins with the filing of an official complaint in the proper court; either in the county where you live or where a business you are suing is located. When you file a lawsuit of any kind, you are referred to as the plaintiff; the one who is bringing a complaint to court. The person or entity against whom the case is filed is often referred to as the defendant; the one who has to try to defend against the accusations stated in the complaint.

Many asbestos lawsuits are filed against several entities – manufacturers, distributors, suppliers, etc.- so in these cases there are multiple defendants.

The complaint states the plaintiff’s version of the facts, the legal concept under which the case is brought (negligence, for example), and asks for specific sums of money as damages or other relief. The plaintiff also files with the court clerk a request that a summons be issued to the defendants. This notifies the defendants that a lawsuit has been filed against them.

In many jurisdictions, the summons will be served by a deputy sheriff or special process server. In other jurisdictions, it may be served by mail. After being notified, the defendants have a certain period of time to file an answer admitting or denying the allegations made in the complaint.

More about how we file an asbestos lawsuit complaint here.

Appellate Court Orders Quick Trial Date for Dying Asbestos Plaintiff

Posted on December 4, 2014 by Steven Kazan

We are pleased to report that Division Three of the First District of the California Court of Appeal has issued a unanimous opinion ordering the trial court to grant preferential trial status to asbestos plaintiff Gerald Boyd.

Asbestos Plaintiff Exposed Over Four Decades

Mr. Boyd, 71 years old, is rapidly dying of mesothelioma caused by exposure to asbestos in the 1940s through the 1980s from the U.S. Steel facility in Pittsburg, CA. Exposure from 1947 to at least 1963 was take home exposure through Mr. Boyd’s father, who worked at U.S. Steel. Exposure from 1967 to at least 1984 was from Mr. Boyd’s exposure as a result of his own work at U.S. Steel.

Mr. Boyd (and his wife Judith) moved for a statutory preference in their trial date, presenting a detailed declaration from his treating oncologist at the University of California, San Francisco that his ability to participate in a trial is diminishing and that there is doubt he will live beyond another six months. This required trial preference under governing California law.

Three giant defendants (U.S. Steel, MW Custom Papers (MeadWestvaco), and Owens-Illinois, worth a combined $16+ billion and anxious to avoid paying Mr. Boyd for the pain they had caused him) opposed preference, presenting no evidence but questioning the treating doctor’s medical opinions.

Kazan Law asked the First District for help, petitioning for an emergency order compelling the trial court to give us a trial date. That court quickly saw the Boyds’ entitlement to relief and, in a unanimous opinion authored by Justice Stuart R. Pollak, granted urgent relief, holding that the Boyds’ “entitlement to relief is obvious” and ordering the trial court to grant preference and set trial to begin no later than February 28, 2015.

We are hopeful that this early trial date will allow Mr. Boyd to see his case to completion so that he can see justice while he yet lives, and can be assured that his family’s financial future is secured.

Battle Against Forced Mesothelioma Genetic Testing Waged by Kazan Law

Posted on December 1, 2014 by Steven Kazan

In a global first for mesothelioma litigation, Kazan Law has taken the lead to legally stop forced mesothelioma genetic testing. At issue is a recently discovered genetic mutation called BAP1 that reportedly signals higher risk for developing mesothelioma.

Kazan Law Files First Declaration Opposing Forced Testing for BAP1 Gene

Kazan Law Associate Andrea Huston filed a declaration here in Alameda County to oppose the forced mesothelioma genetic testing of a client, who is a mesothelioma patient, by the corporation alleged to have exposed her to asbestos causing her mesothelioma.

“I have represented asbestos plaintiffs for 15 years. Until about June 2014, I had never had a case in which any defendant raised any issue regarding BAP1 gene…Nor to my knowledge had anyone in my office had such a case before June 2014,”Andrea states in her declaration.

She mentions another one of our current cases in which the company accused of causing a client’s mesothelioma has requested a “blood sample” from our client so they can test it for the BAP1 gene.

There are several other cases in other parts of the U.S. where forced mesothelioma genetic testing is also currently a controversial issue.

Kazan Law Fight Against Forced Mesothelioma Genetic Testing Featured in Global Law Journal

Forced mesothelioma genetic testing is so new that our cases caught the attention of a prominent defendant-sponsored online blog site, GlobalTort.

The article highlights the declaration we filed and also how the issue of forced mesothelioma genetic testing marks a new phase for mesothelioma litigation.

“Thus, 2014 becomes the year mesothelioma litigation undeniably entered the age of precision scientific analysis aimed at a particular person’s genomics, and related molecular characteristics,” the article states.

BAP1 Gene Discovered in 2011

In 2011, researchers from the University of Hawaii Cancer Center reported that mutations in the BAP1 gene might predispose people with this mutation to develop mesothelioma when they are exposed to asbestos. The researchers are still studying whether BAP1 could help identify individuals at high risk of mesothelioma, and just how to use these findings in treating mesothelioma patients.

“More experiments are urgently needed to see whether BAP1 expression could be used in diagnostic, prognostic, or therapeutic settings,” the researchers noted in an abstract of the findings published in the Journal of Cancer Research and presented at the 2014 American Association for Cancer Research annual meeting.

In an analysis of 10,566 U.S. mesothelioma patients from 1973 to 2010 listed in the US Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program, the researchers reported that only 23 of them carried the BAP1 gene.

Corporate Misuse of Science

It sure didn’t take long for corporate lawyers to try to take the new discovery about BAP1 and turn it into something that to use against innocent people who are dying because of corporate greed and neglect. Knowingly exposing people to lethal asbestos is wrong regardless of anyone’s genetic make-up. Starting with the historic Johns-Manville case in the 1970s, our firm has had a history of successfully pioneering asbestos litigation so we are ready to fight this new 21^st century battle for our clients and asbestos victims everywhere.

Shocking Reversal in Major Italian Asbestos Litigation Case

Posted on November 24, 2014 by Steven Kazan

Swiss Billionaire Escapes Responsibility For Now For Over 3,000 Deaths

In a shocking reversal for international asbestos litigation, Swiss billionaire Stephan Schmidheiny was absolved for now of 3,000 deaths of Italian workers exposed to asbestos in factories formerly part of his company, Eternit. Italy’s Supreme Court overturned a ruling which had sentenced the Swiss industrialist to 18 years in prison.

The Italian court ruled that the statute of limitations for asbestos litigation based on environmental contamination had expired in the case against Schmidheiny. A statute of limitations is a set period of time during which a lawsuit may be filed.

An appeals court in 2013 had upheld Schmidheiny’s conviction and increased to 18 years from 16 the prison term handed down by a lower court in 2012. We reported to you on the upheld conviction here in the Kazan Law blog at that time.

Italy’s premier Matteo Renzi reaction echoed the outrage across Italy on Thursday, according to the Associated Press (AP), after the asbestos litigation high court ruling.

Renzi is quoted by the Associated Press (AP) as saying that the case shows that Italy’s justice system needs to be reformed to speed up trials.

Eternit – Over a Hundred Years of Asbestos Contamination

Founded in 1903, Eternit produced asbestos-containing cement until 1997. Headed by the Schmidheiny family since 1933, Eternit also had factories in the Netherlands, France and Brazil as well as Italy. They also owned a distribution subsidiary in the U.S. that dissolved years ago. But they did not get away with murder here. In fact, Kazan Law won a verdict of $11, 500,000 in 2001 against Eternit right here in Alameda County for a construction project estimator and his wife.

Amid a growing scandal about asbestos, Eternit’s four Italian factories closed in 1986 and the company was sold to an Austrian bank in 2003.

In 2009, following five years of investigation, billionaire former CEO Stephan Schmidheiny and major shareholder Louis de Cartier Marchienne were accused of criminal neglect . Both men were found guilty in February 2013 and sentenced to 16 years in prison. You can read about this important asbestos litigation in a free ebook co-edited by my sister Laurie-Kazan Allen and her husband David Allen, who monitor asbestos developments in Europe.

Marchienne died at age 91 on May 21, 2013 during the appeal of his sentence. Charges against him were dropped in June. But Schmidheiny’s sentence was increased to 18 years. He then successfully appealed the case to Italy’s highest court.

Possibility of Future Asbestos Litigation For Eternit Case

According to a Swiss news media website, a Swiss newspaper Neue Zürcher Zeitung has blamed Italy’s federal prosecutor for its “strategy to deal with asbestos damages through criminal proceedings against individuals” – essentially by pinning all the blame on Schmidheiny.

The newspaper maintains that this may not be the end of the Eternit asbestos litigation, noting that “because the acquittal was mainly for formal reasons, it’s unclear whether … the whole palette of allegations is ‘settled’”.

“The Turin public prosecutor’s office is known to be conducting further criminal investigations,” noted the statement from Schmidheiny’s team. “The defense expects the Italian state to now protect [him] from further unjustified criminal proceedings and to cease all current proceedings.”

We can only hope that this expectation proves unwarranted, and that the Italian prosecutor will move ahead with a murder case, for which there is no statute of limitations.

Posts by: Steven Kazan

Asbestos Case Victim in the News

An Important Year For Asbestos Litigation – Kazan Law Highlights From 2014

Exposed to Asbestos Means Time For a Medical Check-up

Kazan Law Foundation a Top Donor for Chronicle Season of Sharing Fund

How to Claim Mesothelioma Medical Expenses as Tax Deductions

Forced Arbitration Robs Rights of 88-Year Old Beaten Man

Getting Started with an Asbestos Lawsuit

Appellate Court Orders Quick Trial Date for Dying Asbestos Plaintiff

Battle Against Forced Mesothelioma Genetic Testing Waged by Kazan Law

Shocking Reversal in Major Italian Asbestos Litigation Case

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