Global Food Company Ordered to Pay Nearly $13 Million to Family of Asbestos Victim

One of the world’s largest food companies has been ordered to pay nearly $13 million to the family of an asbestos victim. Considered one of the most unusual asbestos cases to be heard in years, the claim involved a “company town” owned by the food enterprise and a resident of the town. In the claim, the residents’ family (plaintiffs) alleged that the company had negligently allowed their loved one to be exposed to asbestos for years while living in the town, eventually leading to his death. As a child, the resident lived in housing owned by the company and just a few hundred yards from a sugar refinery, also owned by the company.

Per the Walnut Creek Patch, at trial, the plaintiffs presented evidence showing that food company employees routinely worked with asbestos, without safety precautions, such that the refinery, the surrounding area, and the company homes were contaminated. The jury concluded that the company negligently exposed the deceased to asbestos and awarded his family $11,000,000 for non-economic damages and $1,958,461 for economic damages. The jury found that the food company was 100% at fault.

Asbestos is the only known cause mesothelioma. According to the American Cancer Society, this aggressive cancer can take between 20 and 50 years to develop between the time of first exposure to asbestos and diagnosis of mesothelioma. If you think you may have been exposed to asbestos, contact your doctor immediately. Early detection could increase treatment options and survival.

Sources

Walnut Creek Patch. Patch Media, 18 Aug. 2017. Web. 22 Aug. 2017.

"What Are the Risk Factors for Malignant Mesothelioma?" American Cancer Society. American Cancer Society, Inc., 2017. Web. 20 Aug. 2017.