Court Allows Woman’s Mesothelioma Claim Against Colgate Palmolive to Move Forward
Though malignant mesothelioma has long been associated with industrial and construction settings and high heat environments, there has been a recent shift in both the victims of mesothelioma who are being diagnosed and the source of their asbestos exposure. Where the majority of people being diagnosed were once older men who had been exposed on the job, a new generation of victims are largely younger women whose asbestos exposure comes from one of the most trusted consumer products: they claim that they were sickened by asbestos that contaminated the body powder that they used after their baths and showers, and more and more U.S. courts are permitting their cases to be heard and decided by juries.
The most recent in this new type of malignant mesothelioma lawsuit that has gotten the go-ahead to proceed was filed by Desiree Hooper-Lynch of New York. She was diagnosed with the rare and fatal form of cancer in April of 2015, and upon investigation she has determined that her exposure came from use of Colgate-Palmolive Company’s Cashmere Bouquet cosmetic talc product between the years 1968 and 1985. She indicates that her initial exposure to the product came while she was living in the countries of Guyana and England, when she was a teacher. She recounts relocating to Brooklyn, New York in 1979 and continuing to use the product through 1985 on a daily basis and sometimes more than once a day, shaking the container and releasing enough of the product for the room to become dusty and to sometimes make her sneeze. Expert witnesses provided affidavits supporting her assertion, but Colgate Palmolive filed a motion for summary judgment with the goal of dismissing Hooper-Lynch’s complaint and all cross claims, doing so without providing any time of case to disprove her assertions of negligence. The court denied the request, indicating that there are issues of fact to be resolved as to whether the company’s product caused her mesothelioma: the case will now proceed to trial, unless the parties agree to a settlement.
If you or someone you love has been diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, one of the most important questions you need to have answered is where your exposure to asbestos came from. The Patient Advocates at Mesothelioma.net can help with this and many other important issues. Call us today at 1-800-692-8608.
Written by Terri Oppenheimer
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