Find An Environmental Attorney To Fight For Your Legal Rights
A toxic tort requires litigation of a legal claim involving exposure to an environmental hazard. One of the most well-known toxic tort cases stemmed from the contamination of groundwater in Woburn, Massachusetts. It was in the 1980s that numerous people, including children, were being stricken with cancer and ultimately dying from substances in that groundwater.
The tragedy was documented in the book and motion picture A Civil Action.
Massachusetts was also the source of another large toxic tort case, this one involving a 2012 meningitis outbreak that sickened people in 19 states. It was eventually linked to contaminated medications from the New England Compounding Center.
While the substance causing a toxic tort is not always a carcinogen or cancer-causing agent, toxic materials can make people very ill, disrupt or permanently alter their lives, and take away some of life’s enjoyment. They can also cause death. Contamination is not always caused by some mustache-twirling, nefarious villain or a CEO who is only out to make money. Frequently, toxic torts emerge from exposure to a toxin that was once believed to be safe. For instance, widespread exposure to asbestos, pesticides, chemicals dumped into water, chemicals that have seeped into the groundwater, contaminated medications, or other substances released into the air can cause people to fall ill and sometimes, die.
This forms the basis for a toxic tort claim, even though many of these substances were initially thought to be harmless. However, that doesn’t excuse companies that don’t thoroughly test the chemicals they use or even hide their ill effects from facing the consequences.
At Parker Waichman LLP, our skilled environmental attorneys are here to help the victims of these cases get the compensation they deserve and bring the culprits to justice. If you’ve suffered due to the effects of toxic chemical exposure, call us today for a free consultation with an experienced toxic tort attorney.
Chemicals That Lead To Toxic Tort Litigation
Physicians and researchers have identified numerous substances or by-products that have been linked to severe illness and even death from exposure to them. Most people are probably familiar with asbestos, but many other substances are suspected of harming people, too, including:
- Chemical solvents, like those used in dry cleaning
- Electromagnetic fields from power lines
- Chemical compounds used in industry, such as benzene, PCBs, mercury, arsenic, and heavy metals
- Lead paint
- Pesticides containing DDT or dioxin
- Landfills and dumps filled with materials that were disposed of unlawfully
- Radon
- Silica
- Welding rods
- Tainted pharmaceuticals
Types Of Toxic Tort Claims
Frequently, toxic tort lawsuit settlements stem from class-action lawsuits. A class-action lawsuit is a type of litigation in which one plaintiff brings a claim on behalf of an enormous number of people who have suffered the same or similar injury.
A requirement of assembling a class-action lawsuit, which must be approved by a judge before it can proceed, is that the list of potential plaintiffs is too long to be named individually in the litigation. In many class-action lawsuits, the individual plaintiff’s claim is not that large on its own; however, when joined by hundreds or thousands of additional plaintiffs, the potential damages can be significant. Not all toxic torts are class-action lawsuits, but they can still involve a substantial number of people.
One example would be a group of industrial workers who were exposed to a chemical that caused an illness such as cancer. Another example would be a number of people who live adjacent to a mill who all contract a chronic disease. Many toxic tort cases involve asbestos.
Even short-term exposure to asbestos can lead to asbestosis, but most cases of asbestosis have been caused by prolonged exposure to asbestos fibers. Asbestosis is a chronic lung disease resulting from inhaling asbestos fibers. The asbestos fibers become trapped in the victim’s lungs and lead to scarring, and this scarring makes the walls of the lungs very stiff and hard to move, so the patient has difficulty breathing. Someone with asbestosis will experience shortness of breath, loss of weight, and a dry cough that will not abate.
Asbestosis cannot be cured.
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