Firm News
Asbestos in NYC Buildings: Exploring the Persistent Public Health Risk
Weitz & Luxenberg owes its beginnings to the confluence of two critical events dating back to the mid-1980s. First, two like-minded law school classmates decided they wanted to be the voice for victims who otherwise might not have one in the legal system.
Second, the New York State legislature revised a law that had been on the books for years. The existing law barred workers harmed by asbestos exposure from suing the responsible parties. The problem lay with the original statute of limitations, based on a worker’s last date of exposure to asbestos.
The new law changed everything. The revised statute of limitations became the moment a victim discovered the injury.
Suddenly, thousands of New Yorkers who were exposed to asbestos while working at the Brooklyn Navy Yard — a key U.S. warship building facility for WWII — and had been exposed to asbestos could sue. And they needed to do it quickly.
The W&L founders saw their opportunity to step up. Their guiding principle? To give every client access to the same level of legal talent that the Fortune 500 defendant companies use when opposing injury lawsuits. Perry Weitz and Arthur Luxenberg intended to level the playing field like nobody’s business.
Everything came down to a consolidated asbestos trial involving men who had worked at the Brooklyn Navy Yard in the 1940s and 1950s. The outcome for 36 W&L clients depended on the representation of a small — but exceptional — group of dedicated attorneys.
And in 1991, the jury verdict came in: $75 million win. All at once, Weitz & Luxenberg was a force in the asbestos bar. And New York was a center of the litigation.
Our firm had given everything we had to represent these clients and secure a victorious outcome. Mr. Weitz and Mr. Luxenberg counted on their beliefs, their approach, and their commitment to securing a better future for our clients.
They envisioned a better way to administer mass tort lawsuits — where many people are injured by the same defective product.
Our firm, which had started to grow, additionally focused on the serious injuries caused by defective silicone breast implants, where thousands of women benefited from the firm’s laser focus.
The creative ways W&L handled the litigation, client service, and marketing processes naturally led us to make a mark in the field of defective drugs and medical devices — starting a stream of successful actions.
Then, more than a decade ago, our firm decided to undertake environmental torts. We are a forerunner in the legal fight against environmental polluters.
Weitz & Luxenberg has worked with clients harmed by the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, the coal ash sludge spill in Tennessee, industrial degreasers in groundwater and indoor air, gasoline additives in water supply wells, and toxic chemicals in coal float-sink test operations.
Since our inception in 1986, Weitz & Luxenberg has overseen more than 33,000 asbestos cases and continues to receive national recognition for our efforts. Our firm has also ranked as the #1 firm in New York City for volume of mesothelioma case filings and #2 nationwide.
In the process of litigating negligent — and often reckless corporations — Weitz & Luxenberg’s experienced attorneys have helped secure approximately $19 billion in verdicts and settlements for more than 55,000 clients across the United States. Our clients include individuals and their families, government bodies, and other entities.
One of our most rewarding successes was helping to secure a jury verdict of $9 billion against Takeda Pharmaceuticals and Eli Lilly on behalf of a client who developed bladder cancer after taking the diabetes drug Actos.
In addition, we have played a key role in negotiating billion-dollar settlements with Johnson & Johnson’s DePuy — and other manufacturers — on behalf of clients who suffered severe medical complications after being implanted with defective hip implants.
In the multidistrict litigation against Stryker for its Rejuvenate and ABGII modular hip implants, our team helped negotiate a global settlement program exceeding $1 billion for clients implanted with the defective hip implant models.
Weitz & Luxenberg now has offices in New York City, Los Angeles, Detroit, and Cherry Hill, New Jersey. We are privileged to work with a team of close to 100 experienced attorneys and nearly 400 dedicated support staff who offer clients assistance 24/7, 365 days of the year.
We continue to play significant leadership roles in litigations. Our list is too numerous to mention, but includes multiple areas of nationwide litigation.
Our team members are skilled in reviewing, analyzing, and summarizing large volumes of complex medical, technical, and scientific documents; conducting computer-assisted legal and factual research; and following pretrial and trial procedures.
W&L attorneys also believe in giving back to the profession. This includes constant lectures and sharing our professional legal knowledge, as well as the establishment of the Perry Weitz Mass Torts Institute at Hofstra Law School.
Our firm also takes charity very seriously. We believe we have an obligation to help the less fortunate — mostly in ways that are not known by the public. This “unrecognized” charity is the highest form of charity in our minds.
At Weitz & Luxenberg we don’t simply rest on our laurels after all these years. Not every trial or legal action goes smoothly. Defendants do not arrive at a settlement discussion with an open checkbook. Our plaintiff’s attorneys need to be ready for hand-to-hand combat sometimes, in order to achieve fair results for our clients.
It’s important for you to know — as a prospective client — what our firm does when the going gets tough. Luckily, for Weitz & Luxenberg, you can easily see a pattern of behavior that demonstrates our firm is in it for the long haul.
We aim to win every single case we accept, bar none. While no law firm can control legal outcomes, our clients have the best possible experience since our cases run smoothly and with intelligent guidance.
W&L broadened our partnership track. Already, the second generation of the founders are making their mark. In addition to partners, it’s important to note the top talent our firm has attracted — from litigators to non-attorney and operations staff.
How we intertwine all these facets ultimately benefits our clients.
Stay on top of breaking news regarding mesothelioma and asbestos, defective drugs and medical devices, environmental issues, consumer protection, and personal injury litigation.
We have locations across the country to conveniently serve our clients.
You may be entitled to legal compensation. We would be honored to represent you.
