How To Prove Asbestos Exposure for a Mesothelioma Claim
Mesothelioma is a highly aggressive type of cancer with one known cause–asbestos exposure. Thus, it doesn’t take much to prove the patient was exposed to asbestos in most cases. However, pinpointing the exact source of the asbestos exposure is often trickier. Direct proof of asbestos exposure can improve your odds of receiving fair compensation for your illness. If you or a loved one has received a mesothelioma diagnosis, Bergman Oslund Udo Little can help you understand how to prove asbestos exposure and file your mesothelioma claim.
Vanessa Firnhaber Oslund, Partner, Bergman Oslund Udo Little Last Updated: October 9, 2024
How Can an Attorney Help You Prove Asbestos Exposure?
Direct occupational or para-occupational exposure to asbestos fibers is the cause of up to 80 percent of mesothelioma cases. If a doctor has diagnosed you with mesothelioma, you have almost certainly experienced asbestos exposure at some point in your life. As a result, a mesothelioma diagnosis can often serve as proof of asbestos exposure. Our attorneys can help you gather medical records showing that you’ve received a mesothelioma diagnosis.
However, in addition to a mesthelioma diagnosis, you must also determine the exact source of asbestos exposure to identify the party or parties responsible for your illness. A significant portion of asbestos cases have resulted from occupational exposure. If you have worked in an industry known for asbestos use, such as construction or manufacturing, reviewing that work history with your attorney can help pinpoint the source of your exposure. Your attorney will delve into the employers you worked for and the job sites where you worked.
Employment records, union records, your own testimony, and testimony from co-workers can prove that you worked in a location where asbestos was present. We may also subpoena past employers for documents showing whether asbestos was present on job sites and, if so, which manufacturers supplied the materials.
How Can BOUL Help Me Determine the Source of My Exposure?
We have a significant repository of documents for asbestos products and Pacific Northwest jobsites. These documents have been obtained during the course of our investigation in hundreds of prior asbestos disease cases.
For example, if you worked at a shipyard like Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton, Washington, we have ship lists, lists of products used on those ships, and a vast amount of testimony from other tradespeople who worked at that shipyard. All of this information can be combined with your work history and recollections to build a case.
Another vital source of information to build a mesothelioma case is from other individuals who worked at the same jobsites. Over the past 20 years, we have represented pipefitters, welders, electricians, insulators, shipfitters, millwrights, machinists and others who worked throughout Washington and Oregon. Those individuals have given testimony regarding jobsite conditions, product use, and other information that could be relevant to your case. If you worked at the same site or on the same ship, this information could be used to help your case.
Finally, work records can sometimes be critical pieces of evidence to build your case. We request Union Records, employment records, and military records. Those documents can have details about where you worked and when.
Strict statutes of limitations have set the deadlines for filing mesothelioma claims. Therefore, you have limited time to file a claim after receiving your mesothelioma diagnosis. Our attorneys will work diligently to gather the necessary evidence and file your claim before the deadline expires.
At Bergman Oslund Udo Little, we have extensive resources to help trace your exposure back to its source. Our extensive proprietary database of job sites throughout the Pacific Northwest lists the known sources of asbestos exposure. We also have access to decades’ worth of records and testimony from workers at common asbestos sites across the Pacific Northwest.
Why Is Proving Asbestos Exposure Important?
Mesothelioma is a cumulative dose disease. That means that the greater exposure to asbestos that someone has, the greater the risk of contracting the disease. It is not enough to say that you generally exposed to asbestos during your life to bring a lawsuit. Instead, you are required to demonstrate that you were exposed to specific products which were contributing factors to causing the disease. This can be done through your own recollections, from coworkers, or from documents.
Pinpointing the source of your asbestos exposure allows us to identify who is liable for your illness. In most cases, we need this information to target a specific defendant in your mesothelioma claim.
Your claim will likely fail without proof linking a specific business or entity to your asbestos exposure. Thus, you would not receive the compensation you and your family deserve.
Take Action Now. Get Legal Help for Your Asbestos Exposure Today.
You’re dealing with enough following a mesothelioma diagnosis. Let us take the burden of proving asbestos exposure off your shoulders.
Since 1995, Bergman Oslund Udo Little has recovered over $1 billion in verdicts and settlements for asbestos exposure victims and their loved ones. Asbestos law is all we do, and we’re dedicated to holding corporations responsible for putting profits over people.
If you or a loved one has developed an asbestos-related disease such as mesothelioma, we’re ready to fight for you. Contact our Seattle office at 206-957-9510 or our Portland office at 503-447-6230 as soon as possible for a free consultation.
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520 Pike St. #1125
Seattle, WA 98101
206-957-9510
1355 NW Everett St.
Suite 100
Portland, OR 97204
503-447-6230
