ASBESTOS VERDICT
Buffalo jury awards $2.25 million to late asbestos worker’s estate

Buffalo jury verdict represents first punitive damages award in a New York state asbestos case in more than 20 years.

The personal injury law firm of Weitz & Luxenberg has protected the legal rights of asbestos-injured workers since 1986. And in that time the firm's mesothelioma lawyers have won several billion dollars in verdicts and settlements for clients.

$2.25M BUFFALO ASBESTOS VERDICT

October 22, 2009 - A Buffalo jury has ordered a St. Louis-based industrial supply company to pay the estate of a Niagara Falls repairman $2.25 million in connection with his death by asbestos-related mesothelioma cancer.

The jury held Fisher Controls financially liable for the mesothelioma disease that killed the former Hooker Chemical repairman, who died at 70 on Nov. 29, 2005, nine years after his retirement from the Niagara Falls plant.

According to the lawsuit, between 1970 and 1988 the man repaired valves manufactured by Fisher Controls. The valves contained asbestos in the gaskets and the packing, trial attorneys said.

After a six-week trial, the jury found the company acted with reckless disregard for the worker’s safety, and ascribed 100 percent financial responsibility to the employer, including a $750,000 punitive damages award.

Court officials said the verdict represents the first time Fisher Controls has been found liable for using asbestos in its products and the first punitive damages award in a New York state asbestos case in more than 20 years.

Dangers of asbestos

Asbestos exposure can occur at home or in the workplace through everyday products such as: asbestos shingles, asbestos ceiling tile, asbestos insulation, brake pads, boilers and more.

Industries that have placed workers most at risk of exposure include the: automobile, construction, electrical, power plant and shipyard industries.

Government sources estimate that in the next decade more than 35,000 people nationwide will be diagnosed with the deadliest form of asbestos-related cancer, mesothelioma.

Seek justice through an asbestos verdict

If you have been diagnosed with mesothelioma and seek a free case review, please notify us through the communication form on this page. We will pursue your claim with vigilance to help you pay for medical bills, lost wages, and suffering.

Please know, the firm works on a contingency basis, so there is no cost to you until we achieve a verdict or negotiate a settlement in your favor.