After six days of testimony, a Louisiana jury decided in favor of mesothelioma victim, ordering Level 3 Holdings and other defendants to pay the man a record-breaking $37.6 million in damages.
Mesothelioma Victim was Union Welder and Pipefitter
Like many other people diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, the victim in the recent lawsuit was exposed to asbestos during the 1960s and 1970s, when he was a union welder and pipefitter. At that time, he worked at numerous plants along a notorious industrial area known as Cancer Alley.
Though the primary defendant in the case was the man’s employer, Level 3 Holdings (formerly known as Peter Kiewit Sons’ Co.,), there were twenty-one companies named in the claim. Each company was accused of negligently exposing the man to asbestos in his workplace, and of knowing or that they should have known of the dangers of the asbestos in the environment they provided or the equipment that they manufactured or sold.
Companies Were Aware that Asbestos Causes Mesothelioma and Other Diseases
Today the public is well aware of asbestos’ dangers and its role in the development of serious diseases like mesothelioma and asbestos, but in the days when the plaintiff was working as a pipefitter there was little access to industrial and medical studies. According to the lawsuit, that information was available to Kiewet and management of other companies, and their failure to warn of the dangers lead to his incurable terminal illness.
Speaking of the record-breaking amount of money awarded to the mesothelioma victim, a family representative said, “We know that no amount of money can make things right for mesothelioma victims, but it is necessary they receive financial support for the costly medical bills and expenses they have incurred as a result of the negligence of companies that chose profits over safety.”
If you or someone you love has been diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, it is important that you have people working on your side. For information on how we can help, contact the Patient Advocates at Mesothelioma.net today at 1-800-692-8608
