Court Grants Mesothelioma Victims Right to Join Lawsuits
Even though malignant mesothelioma is an extremely rare disease, there are a significant number of victims and their survivors who pursue justice from the companies responsible for their illness. In addition to having remarkably similar diagnoses and histories of exposure, many of them seek legal representation from the same attorneys. When this happens and there are enough shared elements to their claims, the plaintiffs can ask the court to let them combine their lawsuits to save time and money, In a recent case, a New York judge granted two victims’ requests, despite objections from the defending asbestos company.
Joining Mesothelioma Claims Has Multiple Benefits
Filing a mesothelioma lawsuit is a big step for somebody who is already facing a terminal diagnosis, or for family members who are grieving the loss of a loved one. The process is emotionally exhausting and time-consuming, so sharing the burden with another family and getting two (or more) cases onto the court’s calendar makes good sense. It also meets the needs of the overburdened courts, but asbestos companies generally object to the move because they fear that the quantity of testimony from multiple cases will work against them with a jury.
In the face of defendants’ objections, New York law has established a set of benchmarks that must be met for two mesothelioma claims to be joined. Not every factor needs to be met, but there does need to be a preponderance of them for a judge to grant the plaintiffs’ request.
Families of New York Carpenters Who Died of Mesothelioma Are Granted Joinder
In a recent example of joinder making sense to the New York courts, the families of two carpenters who both died of malignant pleural mesothelioma found their requests granted. Both Kenneth Last and Patrick Joyce had spent years in the same occupation and had been exposed to asbestos while assisting auto mechanics. Discovery had been completed in both men’s cases and both were represented by the same lawyer.
With seven of eight of the elements in common, Justice Adam Silvera of the Supreme Court of New York County rejected the defending asbestos companies’ objections and allowed the families to combine their cases into one, noting that the central issue and other elements in the claims were virtually identical.
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