Are you in a position to file a personal injury claim but have questions about mesothelioma and the law that you need answered first? Setting up a consultation meeting with an attorney from an experienced and established mesothelioma law firm is the best way to get all the answers specific to your potential case. But for general information, we’ve compiled a short FAQ to offer wary potential litigants some immediate piece of mind by answering their most pressing inquiries now.
Remember, mesothelioma law is complex and requires the guidance of an experienced attorney that specializes in toxic tort cases in order to be successfully navigated. Do not accept any “legal advice” from non-professional sources. Only board-certified lawyers with experience in asbestos personal injury claims can give detailed, localized and personal information on your individual case.
Top Mesothelioma Law FAQs
What are “class-action lawsuits” and “mass torts”? Do have to participate in one to file my claim?
Mass torts are claims of wide-reaching personal injury that affect a large number of people. In a mass tort, a group of plaintiffs file together—as a single suit—often represented by one attorney or firm, comprehensively.
Class-action lawsuits are a specific type of mass tort with more explicit parameters. Class-action lawsuits are initiated on behalf of a certain “class” of victims that all share common injuries or damages at the fault of the same defendant or set of defendants. In a class-action lawsuit, one plaintiff represents the entire “class” of claimants and acts on behalf of the entire group.
The U.S. Supreme Court has consistently blocked these types of litigation in asbestos cases, so each asbestos victim maintains the freedom to file claims independently.
Am I eligible for filing a mesothelioma lawsuit if I don’t remember where or when I was exposed to asbestos?
Yes. Your attorney will investigate these findings of fact and compile the necessary evidence to support your claim. You need only to provide what information you do have and trust your attorney to take care of the rest.
What if I am too sick to appear at trial—what will happen to my case then?
You can rest easy, knowing that your attorney will represent your interests at trial—if your case gets that far.
It is worth noting that most asbestos injury cases are resolved outside of the courtroom, with the claimant and defendant, or defendants, reaching an agreeable settlement award without taking the case to trial.
In cases where that does not happen and in which the claimant is too ill to appear at trial, his or her attorney is permitted to act as a representative for that individual. If such a circumstance seems likely to occur, as the case progresses, your attorney will schedule a video-recorded deposition (a common practice in mesothelioma law, in general) while you are still well enough to present your testimony so that it can be preserved for trial, if needed.