According to an appellate court ruling, Exxon Mobil is to pay $7 million in damages to Bonnie Anderson from Berkeley Heights, NJ, who contracted mesothelioma after washing her husband’s clothes that were contaminated with asbestos. Even her husband, John Anderson, is entitled to receive $500,000 from the company. She had previously been granted $100,000 by the first jury, though the damages were reconsidered in the court of appeals.
John worked with Exxon Linden Bayway Refinery for 35 years. During the first six years, from 1969 to 1975, he was assigned the job of removing insulation to attach pumps and filters.
There was apparent neglect regarding employee safety at Exxon. Although several safety meetings were held for the workers, they were not provided with any protection like a respirator or uniform. The only thing they were provided with was helmets. According to the court, no worker knew that the copious amounts of dust resulting from their work contained asbestos and that they could develop serious illnesses if exposed. This toxic silicate mineral, when inhaled, can have injurious effects on the body. Asbestos related diseases like mesothelioma and asbestosis can be easily contracted if the mineral is inhaled or ingested over a period of time.
John was not aware that the insulation he was required to remove contained toxic asbestos fibers, which is why he did not wear a protective uniform while working. Bonnie, before washing his work clothes, used to shake the dust off. This was probably when she inhaled or ingested asbestos fibers which led to her developing the virtually incurable form of cancer, mesothelioma. She too was employed at the refinery for a period of 11 years, starting in 1975. She began to experience severe swelling and pain in her stomach in 2001. She was finally diagnosed, and came to understand that her suffering was due to peritoneal mesothelioma, a less common form of mesothelioma which affects the lining of the abdomen.
The case is the first secondary exposure case in which a jury verdict was upheld since the year 2006, when the court came out with the decision that gave people the power to sue the companies liable for illnesses resulting from secondary exposure to asbestos.
The ruling reminds companies to offer workplace safety to their employees, who are at a high risk of contracting asbestos-related diseases, and tracking toxic material into their homes, endangering their families. Victims of mesothelioma are entitled to receive compensation from the companies responsible for their illness, for which a qualified mesothelioma lawyer is required to obtain maximum compensation.
According to Kevin Allexon, spokesperson of Exxon Mobil Corp, the company has not yet reached a decision whether to appeal the ruling in the highest state court.
Source: borrilaw.com
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