Mass torts are torts
that cause harm or injury to a large number of people. For example,
an industrial or manufacturing company that pollutes a stream
or lake with carcinogic lead or dyes that causes harm to citizens through
drinking water exposure is a mass tort. Defective drugs from
pharmaceutical companies that cause injury or deaths to many people also are
mass torts. In many cases, mass torts are highly correlated with toxic
torts.
Toxic Torts
What is a toxic tort?
A
toxic tort is a legal claim for harm caused by exposure to a dangerous
substance -- such as a pharmaceutical drug, pesticide, or chemical. If an
individual or a group of people has been exposed to and injured by a dangerous
substance, either may be able to bring a toxic tort
lawsuit.
Most toxic tort injuries arise in one of the following
ways:
- occupational exposure - when industrial workers
are exposed to toxins on the job (examples include asbestos, benzene,
beryllium, and silica)
- pharmaceutical drugs - when prescribed drugs cause
unintended side effects (to learn more about lawsuits involving pharmaceutical
drugs, see article Product Liability Claims Involving Pharmaceutical
Drugs)
- exposure in the home - when people breathe or
ingest harmful substances in their home, such as mold (to learn more about
mold, see article Toxic Mold
Basics), and
- consumer products - when people use products (like
pesticides) that cause unintended injuries.
To
learn more about what constitutes a toxic tort, and for tips on special issues
in toxic tort litigation, see article Toxic Torts
Overview.
How can I prove fault in a toxic tort
case?
Plaintiffs in toxic tort lawsuits can use a number
of legal theories to try to establish liability and receive compensation for
their injuries. Some common claims in toxic tort cases
include:
-
Negligence. The plaintiff in a negligence claim
must prove that 1) the defendant (perhaps a construction business owner whose
employees worked with asbestos) had an obligation to use ordinary care toward the
plaintiff or the general public, 2) the defendant's action or failure to act
did not meet this duty (for example, the owner failed to provide workers with
safety equipment to prevent inhalation of asbestos), and 3) the victim or the
general public was injured as a result.
-
Strict
liability. In some toxic tort cases, certain behavior is deemed so
dangerous that anyone engaging in it will be held legally responsible (strictly
liable) for any damages that result. Toxic tort victims in these cases
don’t have to show that the defendant acted carelessly.
- Intentional misrepresentation or
fraud. If a defendant knew that a substance was dangerous, but
deliberately concealed the danger or marketed the product in a misleading way,
a toxic tort plaintiff may have a claim for intentional misrepresentation or
fraud.
To learn
more about legal theories commonly used in toxic tort cases, see article
Toxic Torts: Legal Theories of
Liability.
Who can toxic tort victims sue for injuries and health
problems?
Figuring out who is responsible for a toxic tort
victim's exposure to a dangerous substance can be difficult. Plaintiffs
generally sue anybody that had a link to the toxin -- including the
manufacturer of the toxin, the manufacturer of machinery that exposes workers
to toxins, the owner or lessor of a building or site that contains or emits a
toxin, companies that store toxins, and manufacturers of safety equipment
intended to protect employees from toxins. To learn more about possible
defendants in a toxic tort lawsuit, see article Toxic Torts Overview.
I
recently became seriously ill from a dangerous chemical, but my exposure
occurred years ago. Is it too late to sue?
An injured plaintiff must bring a lawsuit within a certain
period of time after harm occurred -- under laws called statutes of
limitations. In toxic tort cases, many plaintiffs don't discover their injuries
until many years after the harm occurred, because symptoms often take years to
show up. Luckily, the courts follow the "discovery rule," which means
the clock doesn't start ticking on the statute of limitations time period until
the plaintiff actually discovers the harm. If you just recently became ill from
your exposure to a dangerous chemical, meaning you just discovered that the
chemical harmed you, it is probably not too late to sue. Contact a lawyer
immediately.
Contact London Law Group at (773) 528-1433 if you believe you
are a victim of a toxic tort.