Need a Lung Cancer Attorney? How to take Legal Action
According to longevity.org, one in every 17 people will be diagnosed with lung cancer during their lifetime. There is a new lung cancer diagnosis in the United States every 2.2 minutes, with about 236,000 new diagnoses each year. While smoking is certainly a cause of lung cancer, as many as 65 percent of all new lung cancer diagnoses are for those who have never smoked or are former smokers. Lung cancer can be especially deadly and is the leading cause of cancer deaths, taking more than 130,000 American lives every year.
Since 1987, lung cancer has been the leading cancer killer of women, taking 1.4 times as many lives as breast cancer. About 23 percent of those diagnosed with lung cancer will survive five years or more, however, if lung cancer is caught before it has spread, the chances of survival dramatically improve. Despite the fact that lung cancer is the most common type of cancer, only about 6 percent of federal government dollars spent on cancer research are spent on researching lung cancer.
If I Smoked, Can I Still File a Lung Cancer Lawsuit? Many people who smoke or who have smoked in the past and are diagnosed with lung cancer believe they cannot file a lung cancer lawsuit. This is far from the truth. There are many carcinogens that can cause lung cancer other than cigarette smoke. Carcinogens you have been exposed to in the workplace may have caused or at the very least contributed to your lung cancer diagnosis. There are many potential legal remedies available, including $30 billion dollars in trust funds set aside for those whose lung cancer is the result of asbestos exposure.
Filing an asbestos lung cancer lawsuit, a radon gas lung cancer lawsuit, a silica dust lung cancer lawsuit, or another carcinogen lung cancer lawsuit can ensure you receive compensation for your damages. These damages include medical expenses and lost wages under economic damages, and pain and suffering under non-economic damages. If you have lost a loved one as a result of lung cancer caused by a carcinogen, you may be eligible to file a lung cancer wrongful death lawsuit.
How Do You File a Lung Cancer Lawsuit? To file a successful lung cancer lawsuit, you need the assistance of a strong lung cancer attorney who has a deep understanding of everything involved in the process and who has your best interests at heart. Your lung cancer lawyer can determine whether it can be established that workplace negligence contributed to or caused your lung cancer. Perhaps you were exposed to asbestos, radon gas, silica dust, diesel, or any number of additional carcinogens while at work. Exposure to these carcinogens that lead to lung cancer entitles you to file a lung cancer lawsuit. Medical treatments for your lung cancer are expensive, even if you have insurance. Lung cancer lawyers typically work on a contingency basis, meaning you are not required to pay any upfront costs. Your lawyer only gets paid after recovering compensation for your lung cancer damages.
Asbestos lung cancer often takes many years to develop, but once it is diagnosed, aggressive treatment is essential—and is not always effective. If your lung cancer is the result of asbestos exposure in the workplace, you may file a lung cancer lawsuit, a claim through an asbestos trust fund, a U.S. Veterans Affairs claim, or a wrongful death lawsuit. Your lung cancer lawsuit will establish negligence in your case by demonstrating how the other party contributed to or caused you to develop lung cancer. Since this is a time when you will want to spend as much time with your family as possible, it can be a huge relief to allow a highly experienced lung cancer attorney to handle the legal details on your behalf. There are four elements that must be established for a successful lung cancer lawsuit:
- Was there a duty of care owed to you? If the defendant was responsible for taking reasonable measures to keep you from harm—like making sure you had personal protective equipment if you were exposed to carcinogens—then they owed you a duty of care.
- Was this duty of care breached? If the duty of care owed to you by your workplace was ignored or omitted—whether intentionally or inadvertently—then that duty of care was breached.
- Did the breach of duty of care lead to your lung cancer?
- Do you have damages—both economic and emotional—that are a direct result of the breach of duty of care on the part of your workplace?
Once your attorney has established all these elements, an asbestos lung cancer lawsuit, radon gas lung cancer lawsuit, silica dust lung cancer lawsuit or another type of lung cancer lawsuit will be filed on your behalf. Your attorney will gather all evidence required to prove your lung cancer lawsuit, including your medical records. You may be offered a quick settlement, however, the amount might not be enough to cover the actual damages related to your lung cancer.
If this is the case, your lung cancer attorney will argue your case at trial before a jury. The goal of your lung cancer attorney will be to secure a settlement that will fully cover all your damages, including medical, lost wages, and pain and suffering. Your attorney will also ensure that the statutes of limitations are not exceeded, which could prevent you from recovering damages for your lung cancer.
Where Are Lung Cancer Lawsuits Being Filed? Lung cancer lawsuits are being filed all across the United States. Many of these are asbestos lung cancer lawsuits. In fact, of the lung cancer cases filed in 2020 and 2021, about 40 percent were the result of asbestos exposure. This figure is up significantly from 25 percent in 2017. In other words, asbestos lung cancer lawsuits are quickly catching up in number to mesothelioma lawsuits.
The top five states for asbestos-related deaths and illnesses are California, Pennsylvania, Florida, New York, and Texas. This is not especially surprising, since these are also the five states with the largest populations. Areas with mining, oil and gas industries, shipyards, power plants, vermiculite mining, steel mills, locomotive building, agricultural industries, offshore oil and gas, and chemical plants are those most likely to have higher rates of asbestos lung cancer.
Choosing the Best Lung Cancer Lawyers – You may wonder how you choose the best lung cancer lawyer. Lung cancer—whether from asbestos exposure, radon gas exposure, silica dust exposure, or another exposure to a carcinogen—is a devastating disease that takes a toll on the victims, along with their families and loved ones. If the cause of your lung cancer is toxic exposure, you likely have the right to file for compensation for your damages. Having an attorney who can help you understand your legal options and investigate potential sources of exposure in your past can be critical to the success of your claim. The last thing you need following your lung cancer diagnosis is more stress.
Having confidence in your legal representation is critically important during this difficult time. It can be overwhelming and intimidating to find the right lung cancer attorney. You want to make sure you choose an attorney who is experienced in the complexities associated with lung cancer lawsuits. Most attorneys offer a free initial consultation; as an informed consumer you should take advantage of these consultations. During this consultation, you can ask how many lung cancer lawsuits the attorney has handled, what the potential costs will be, and what damages you may be entitled to receive for your lung cancer.
Some attorneys work by themselves, while others work as a team. Ask your attorney how they work so you will know who will primarily be handling your claim. One of the biggest factors is how well you can communicate with the attorney and how well your questions are answered. While you don’t have to become best friends with your lung cancer attorney, you do want to make sure you feel at ease with them. Once you have chosen your lung cancer attorney, you can focus solely on your health, knowing your case is in good hands.
Getting the Help You Need from a Carcinogen Exposure Lung Cancer Lawyer – When you have been diagnosed with carcinogen exposure lung cancer, filing a lung cancer lawsuit can simply seem like too much. An experienced lung cancer lawyer can take this burden from your shoulders. You can trust that our attorneys will focus on your best interests. A well-qualified lung cancer lawyer will work for you and your loved ones every step of the way, always going the extra mile to fight for the best settlement possible. A good lung cancer law firm will have significant experience with lung cancer cases. Whether your lung cancer is the result of radon gas exposure, silica dust exposure, asbestos exposure, or another carcinogen, a reputable lung cancer law firm will be ready to help you through this difficult time.
DISCLAIMER: Statutes of Limitations limit the amount of time that an individual has to file a lawsuit, and not only vary from state to state, but also vary by cause of action. The information provided above and in the state-specific pages in this section is meant as a general guide, and is for informational purposes only. Each client’s case is unique, and the specific circumstances of any individual case can have significant bearing on the applicable statute of limitations. Any person who believes they may have a viable cause of action is strongly encouraged to consult with an attorney about the statute of limitations for his or her case. Attorney Andrew Sullo is licensed to practice law in Texas, and can prosecute cases that are part of a federal multi-district litigation. Andrew Sullo does not practice law in any other state, and is not certified by the Boards of Legal Specialization in any state. Not all states have board certifications. This information is not intended to solicit clients for matters outside of the State of Texas. Our firm is not accepting cases in any state where it would be impermissible for it to do so. Sullo & Sullo, LLP maintains its principal office in Houston, Texas.
