This four-part series is designed to introduce non-legal-professionals to the complex and complicated world of asbestos litigation. Topics covered will include applicable legal terms, sources and methods of compensation, how to choose an attorney and what to expect from a settlement.
If you believe you are entitled to mesothelioma compensation after being diagnosed with this rare and deadly form of cancer, do not hesitate to take legal action. Each state has time limits on how long after a mesothelioma diagnosis that a claim can be filed, in addition to the fact that life expectancy after a diagnosis is relatively short. So, time is of the essence when seeking compensation and should not be dwindled away.
Your first step towards monetary compensation will be to hire an attorney and file a claim. Before being able to complete the second part of this vital first step, you must determine who is responsible for your exposure to asbestos—and ascertain your ability to prove that exposure as the cause of your illness.
Mesothelioma compensation generally comes from a trust, set up by a company that once made or installed asbestos but has since gone bankrupt. If you have fallen ill with an asbestos-related illness, you must determine the source of that illness—in about 90 percent of cases, that source was asbestos exposure. If this is the fact in your case, you will need to help your attorney compile required proof of where, when and how you were exposed. Through this process, the responsible party or parties should also be illuminated.
It is estimated that more than 18-30 billion dollars has been set aside in trust funds established by now-defunct businesses that formerly profited off of the sale of asbestos-containing products. This exorbitant sum is now intended for mesothelioma compensation—to pay settlements to the victims who fall ill after the company establishing the trust has long-since fallen under.
Your attorney will be able to track down the company or companies you worked for or were otherwise associated with and determine how compensation will take place, prior to filing the claim on your behalf. Once that claim has been filed, you are well on your way to receiving the mesothelioma compensation you deserve.
The legal process behind an asbestos settlement can be an admittedly arduous one, which is all the more reason you are recommended to proceed post-haste. In addition to proving your employment history, the path to mesothelioma compensation is also paved with requirements for detailed medical records proving your diagnosis, as well as (in most cases) a videotaped deposition, in which you will provide verbal testimony of the facts in your case.
The good news is that much of the job in your case is that of the attorney who represents you—all the more reason to make sure that you hire a legal team that is highly competent and able to meet all of your legal needs, quickly and effectively.