Info on Railroad Asbestos-Mesothelioma Cancer Claims

Rick is a Virginia injury attorney who handles car accidents, medical malpractice, FELA, wrongful death, etc.

When railroad workers (e.g., conductor, switchman, engineers, track maintenance workers) are diagnosed with cancer (whether it be mesothelioma cancer, or lung, bladder, throat, colon, brain cancer), the worker and their family members wonder whether the cause of the cancer was asbestos equipment or products.
The spouses and children of railroad workers often ask these same questions. Many times, the spouse or family members have no earthly idea what their parent did on the railroad besides knowing the name of their railroad job: "conductor" for example.

For more info about mesothelioma and other railroad-related cancers, check out these in-depth articles:
Workers with Mesothelioma and Other Cancer May File Two Separate Claims
Top 3 Things You Need to Know When Filing a Mesothelioma Claim Against a Railroad
Mesothelioma Can Affect Virtually Any Rail Worker

Let's face it, most of us aren't around a railroad yard office, riding in a railroad diesel freight engine, or standing around in railroad yards switching diesel freight locomotive engines. For this reason, experienced railroad cancer/mesoethelioma attorneys like ourselves must often serve as virtual investigators for railroad workers and their families to discover exactly what asbestos-laden railroad equipment a worker was exposed to decades ago. Was it the diesel engines? What about cabooses, roundhouses, asbestos brakes or other asbestos insulation?
As most railroad workers and their families now realize, railroads such as CSX, Norfolk Southern, Conrail, and other railroads were heavy users of asbestos insulating products because asbestos has heat insulating qualities not found in many other insulating materials.
Although bad health effects of asbestos were known as early as the 1930s, the railroads ignored the health hazards until OSHA (the nation's Occupational Safety and Health Administration) banned asbestos from new products and widely warned about cancers and tremendous health hazards, but the railroads and many other industries ignored the dangers.

One of the most dangerous, and well-known, things about asbestos is that it takes decades for the cancer or other permanent lung disease to develop. In other words, railroads could ignore the dangers because it wasn't hitting them in their pocketbooks from lawsuits and claims for mesothelioma or asbestos cancer. It was easy for railroads to fail to substitute out new insulating materials for asbestos materials because they weren't getting hit with thousands, or millions, of dollars in jury verdicts. All that changed by the 1980s and early 1990s when juries around the country began hitting the railroads in their pocketbook and that's when the railroads realized they better start substituting out the asbestos. It began to cost them profits.

This is why it is important to consult with a FELA law firm if you or a loved one was diagnosed with mesothelioma and suspect it was caused by asbestos exposure - railroads seem to only take action when it effects the company's bottom line.

Our firm has been involved in this type of railroad wrongful death litigation and has hammered the railroads due to the horror of mesothelioma cancer, the chemotherapy and/or radiation involved in cancer treatment, and how it leaves family members decimated by the loss of a loved one. And, these cancers are wholly preventable! Asbestos is the cause, and if it had been eliminated there would be no harm or loss of life.

As a federal law, the FELA (i.e. Federal Employers Liability Act) controls these injury and disease claims the law is uniform throughout the state and federal court of the USA. There are never any upfront fees or costs to talk to one of our experienced railroad injury and wrongful death attorneys, but there are statutes of limitations so act promptly and contact us immediately if you have questions.

Our railroad injury attorneys have posted many videos providing info on railroad asbestos, railroad cancers, and railroad mesothelioma claims. Please take a moment to view these informational railroad cancer and mesothelioma videos here.

About the Editors: Shapiro, Lewis & Appleton is a Virginia injury law firm whose attorneys focus on personal injury and accident law and have handled hundreds of Federal Employers' Liability Act claims for railroad workers hurt or made ill while doing their rail jobs. We also have represented many people injured in train accidents. Please take a few moments to review our railroad injury case results. Our primary offices are in Virginia Beach and Hampton, VA, but we're ready to come to you anywhere in Virginia if you've been seriously hurt by someone else's carelessness.

Rick Shapiro and James Lewis have been included among the Best Lawyers in America since 2008, and have been named Virginia Super Lawyers for Personal Injury Law since 2010. Fewer than 5 percent of lawyers are chosen for this professional honor.

In addition, we were the first injury law firm in Virginia to join Primerus, a select group of highly ethical and respected law firms. Our firm has the highest rating of AV from Martindale-Hubbell, a national lawyer ranking organization, which means we have a reputation for preeminent legal skill. Our attorneys have even been included in the National Million Dollar Advocates Forum since 2009.

We would like to send you one of our free reports about railroad injury and FELA cases, including Dos & Don'ts When Injured at a Railroad: Your FELA Rights and What Railroad Claim Agents Agents Won't Tell You (But You Must Know).

While not every injury case meets our criteria, we offer a free initial confidential injury case consultations, so call us toll free at (800) 752-0042. If you cannot get through due to high call volume, please leave a voicemail so we can return your call.

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Info on Railroad Asbestos-Mesothelioma Cancer Claims