Mesothelioma Legal Blog

October 4, 2017 – Announcing the Lifetime Achievement selection of Michael Throneberry among America’s Top 100 Attorneys®. Lifetime Achievement selection to America’s Top 100 Attorneys® is by invitation only and is reserved to identify the nation’s most exceptional attorneys whose accomplishments and impact on the legal profession merit a Lifetime Achievement award. Selection is not achieved based on a single accomplishment or a single great year of success, but rather on a lifetime of hard work, ethical standards, and community enriching accomplishments that are inspiring among the legal profession.

A mesothelioma diagnosis is frightening where the emotional reactions can be one of shock, fear, anger and denial. Having experienced and witnessed these emotions first hand, these emotional reactions can be crippling. It is important to understand that time is of the essence for victims and their families. Mesothelioma victims must quickly come to terms with the illness to face treatment and to allow family members to understand the psychological stages and symptoms. The mesothelioma diagnosis will lead the victim and the victim’s family down a path of discovery to determine what mesothelioma can do.

Construction workers are often involved in the renovation and upgrading of buildings or industrial complexes. As a result, construction workers may be at a high risk of asbestos exposure. Asbestos is a mineral fiber linked to mesothelioma, lung cancer and asbestosis. Mesothelioma is a rare cancer that attacks the lining of the organs caused asbestos exposure. There were a number of products manufactured and used in the construction industry that contained asbestos and exposed construction workers to the hazardous mineral.

After two weeks of in-person trial, a Los Angeles County jury awarded a 64-year-old woman diagnosed with mesothelioma $43 million on May 20, 2022. This verdict is among the largest seen in recent years. The woman, who was diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2019, blamed Algoma Hardwoods Inc. for her condition. According to the evidence presented, the 64-year-old California woman never directly worked with the toxic substance known as asbestos. However, her husband used to work in a capacity that exposed him to asbestos. He worked with doors that contained asbestos.

In the midst of thousands of lawsuits claiming plaintiffs developed ovarian cancer, mesothelioma, and other serious health conditions, federal regulators and Congress have issued subpoenas to pharmaceutical and cosmetics giant Johnson & Johnson to seek answers over whether or not the company’s talc-based products pose a risk to the public. Executives for Johnson & Johnson recently revealed the company has received subpoenas from the Securities and Exchange Commission, the U.S. Department of Justice, and a member of the U.S. Senate seeking information about the health risks of talcum powder products.

A New York state court recently issued an important ruling in an asbestos cancer lawsuit preventing one of the defendants from attempting to have itself removed from the case and potentially escape liability for its role in the victim’s cancer diagnosis. With the court’s ruling, defendant retailer Lot Less will remain as a defendant to the case while the plaintiff proceeds with the information gathering phase of the litigation in order to establish exactly what the business knew about the safety of the products it sold to consumers like the victim in this case.