Asbestos litigation when it comes to veteran rights can be even more complex and confusing than other types of asbestos litigation. That’s because of the additional layers of government regulations and agencies involved when it comes to veterans of our armed forces.  There are approximately 25 million U.S. veterans alive today from both wartime and peacetime duties in all branches of the service. Many were exposed to asbestos during their time in the service and are at risk of developing mesothelioma or another fatal asbestos disease.

While veterans represent 8% of the U.S. population, veterans account for 30% of all known mesothelioma deaths that have occurred in this country!

Ringler Radio Interviews Steven Kazan About Asbestos Litigation

To help clarify the issues surrounding asbestos litigation for veterans, a major leading legal talk radio network, Ringler Radio, presented by Ringler Associates, turned to Steven Kazan.

Steven Kazan, one of the key pioneers in asbestos litigation, is the founding, senior and managing principal of the firm Kazan, McClain, Satterley & Greenwood.  A noted international expert on asbestos issues, Steven has successfully represented thousands of asbestos victims. He frequently consults with both court appointed and elected officials and provides guidance to labor organizations on asbestos.

Steven was interviewed by Ringler Radio host Larry Cohen, a principal with Ringler Associates and Manny Valdez Sr., also with Ringler Associates and a Vietnam veteran.  Ringler Radio presents analysis of news, information and legislation on structured legal settlements through Legal Talk Network and as podcasts available on iTunes.

Expert Advice on Asbestos Litigation for Veterans

During the interview, Steven explained how veterans were often exposed to asbestos unknowingly during their service because the companies that made the products used by the military issued no warnings about the danger.

“It’s a real problem for veterans because they have had a lot of exposure,” Steven explained.  “The primary place where veterans were exposed was the U.S. Navy. It also affects the Army and Coast Guard as well as people who worked in the government shipyards.  So it is a very serious problem for anyone who has had military experience.”

When asked about specific cases, Steven highlighted the story of an enlisted soldier in the Army.  After serving 22 years helping to maintain army cars and trucks, he developed mesothelioma.  Kazan Law was able to push his case forward to trial and win financial justice for him.  Another case Mr. Kazan discussed on the air involved a Naval aviator who was a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and became the commander of the entire Pacific carrier fleet. He retired as a Rear Admiral but was soon diagnosed with mesothelioma. Kazan Law also obtained compensation for him and his family.

“In the Navy you’re living on ship 24/7 and the entire ship may get contaminated with asbestos dust in the air,” Steven said.  He explained how Kazan Law identifies the source of asbestos exposure, whose asbestos products were involved, and then holds those companies accountable. Although many cases are settled out of court, some cases go to trial. These cases can earn seven figure settlements, with many reaching jury verdicts of over $10 million.

“Our cases that do go to trial tend to produce very good results for our clients in terms of money,” Steven said.  Although he maintained that client settlement amounts are confidential he said, “In 40 plus years we have never represented an asbestos victim who did not recover money. We’ve been very successful at getting compensation for veterans as well as others who have had asbestos disease.”

Steven was commended on the air for “fighting the fight for all of us and especially the veterans.”

Justice Through Asbestos Litigation

Asbestos was used in nearly every branch of the U.S. Armed Forces. The most common risks for asbestos exposure resulted from insulation used in ships and vehicles from the 1930s until the 1970s. Symptoms of illness from asbestos exposure, such as mesothelioma, do not emerge for decades after the exposure.

It seems unjust that not only did brave members of the armed forces confront gunfire and bombs from enemy attacks and endure harsh living conditions, but years later they also face death from exposure to asbestos in the very ships and aircraft in which they served our country.  This is why asbestos litigation is especially important to achieve justice for veterans.

How Veterans may have been exposed to asbestos

According to the Veterans Administration, veterans who also served in these civilian occupations may have been exposed to asbestos: mining, milling, shipyard work, insulation work, demolition, carpentry and construction, manufacturing and installation of products such as flooring and roofing.

Compensation Benefits for Health Problems

Veterans may file a claim for disability compensation for health problems related to exposure to asbestos during military service. Every veteran also has ‎the right to sue. For a veteran, choosing the best attorney for asbestos litigation is crucial to achieving the highest compensation award possible.

If you or someone you love has mesothelioma, you are probably exhausted. That’s completely understandable. Between making the rounds to doctor’s appointments, the side effects of medicine and the toll illness can take on your physical and mental energy, you may feel that it’s all you can do just to get up and get through another day. Mesothelioma law – the legal framework that allows you to file a lawsuit against the corporations that caused your disease – may be the last thing on your mind.

The good news is that filing a mesothelioma lawsuit doesn’t have to take a lot of your precious time and energy. A good mesothelioma lawyer will do the bulk of the work to investigate your claim and build your case. And turning to mesothelioma law to seek restitution for your injuries can have benefits that make your effort very worthwhile.

3 Ways Mesothelioma Law Can Help You

1. Mesothelioma Law Holds Guilty Corporations Accountable

Johns Manville, W.R. Grace, Kaiser, Owens Corning, United States Gypsum, Babcock & Wilcox, Raytech: all these companies have something in common. They have acknowledged that their products and/or work environment exposed people to asbestos, leading to mesothelioma and other asbestos diseases. These companies have been sued by so many people that they set up asbestos trust funds to pay current and future mesothelioma victims. Around 70 corporations have set up these funds. This is an example of mesothelioma law in action.

In 1929, when the first worker filed a personal injury lawsuit against the Johns Manville Corporation because the asbestos in the company’s workplace had made him sick, the corporation tried to shrug it off. When a few more workers came forward and filed lawsuits, Johns-Manville fought hard in court. By the early 1970s, when thousands more workers had become sick with mesothelioma and other lung diseases caused by asbestos exposure and sued Johns Manville, it could no longer ignore its responsibility. The corporation was one of the first to file for bankruptcy due to asbestos litigation. The Court mandated that the bankruptcy set aside assets for future mesothelioma victims.

The courage of the first workers who fought David and Goliath battles against huge corporations paved the way for you to make your claim. Plus, the weight of many lawsuits over several decades did the important work of bringing the dangers of asbestos exposure to light.

Because of mesothelioma law, asbestos is banned in more than 50 countries and has been removed from most products. Because of mesothelioma law, standards have been set to protect workers and the environment during asbestos removal. Because of mesothelioma law, corporations know they can no longer ignore the toxic health effects of asbestos in order to turn a quick profit.

Whether you are the first person to sue a manufacturer or your former employer or you join a list of thousands, your mesothelioma lawsuit is important. It is your chance to raise your voice and speak out against the negligence and injustice that caused your illness. Mesothelioma law gives you the chance to protect future generations, by once again sounding the alarm about the dangers of asbestos exposure.

2. Mesothelioma Law Can Provide Compensation

The most obvious benefit of a lawsuit is monetary recovery. Mesothelioma law gives you the opportunity to demand payment for your pain and suffering and to support your family in a terribly challenging time.

Your health insurance may cover your medical bills, but it won’t pay for your lost wages or for the time off that family members take off work to assist with your care. A financial cushion can help the people you love make it through this difficult time. Mesothelioma law gives you a way to ensure that your family can live comfortably in the future, even after you are gone.

Kazan Law has won verdicts of as much as  $32 million for someone with mesothelioma, often a surviving spouse and family can get more! You owe it to your family to talk to an experienced mesothelioma lawyer about whether it makes sense for you to file a mesothelioma lawsuit.

The large verdicts in mesothelioma cases are also a deterrent to corporations that may be tempted to ignore negative health impacts from their products. The cost of mesothelioma verdicts is a strong incentive to stop using asbestos. Mesothelioma law allows you to hold corporate criminals accountable for their actions and prevent future harm.

3. Mesothelioma Law Can Help You Give to Others

As mentioned above, mesothelioma verdicts and settlements often involve large sums of money. Once your family’s needs are met, there may be money left over. Mesothelioma law can help you touch the lives of others in one more way: through charitable giving.

Whether your family wants to start its own foundation or you want to make a gift in honor of a loved one to an established mesothelioma charity, a mesothelioma lawsuit can give you the means to contribute and make a difference in the lives of others.

Nonprofits like the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization work hard to warn those at risk for developing mesothelioma and to educate the public about the damage that asbestos exposure can cause to human health.

Nonprofit teaching hospitals are conducting research to pioneer groundbreaking treatments for mesothelioma. Stanford Medicine Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery specializes in mesothelioma care and this prestigious medical school conducts clinical trials that can lead to innovations in mesothelioma healthcare. The Thoracic Oncology Program at the University of California San Francisco Medical School – possibly the best medical school in the United States – has pushed the envelope on surgical and other treatments that offer promise for mesothelioma patients. The University of Chicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center also conducts clinical trials and research to advance mesothelioma treatments. In time, the researchers and doctors at these medical schools and others like them have the potential to find treatments that prolong the lives of mesothelioma patients and could even lead to a cure.

These and other charities support current and future victims of asbestos exposure. Thanks to mesothelioma law, you could have the opportunity to pay it forward and contribute to the search for a cure for mesothelioma.

If you’re still not sure whether mesothelioma law will benefit you, there is one simple thing you can do: contact Kazan Law. There is no charge for your consultation with a Kazan Law attorney and you can find out what it would take to file a mesothelioma lawsuit and recover compensation for your illness. It could be the most momentous financial step you will take in your life.

Mesothelioma attorneys are not all the same. Some mesothelioma attorneys are very experienced and knowledgeable. Others sadly are unscrupulous and out to profit from someone else’s tragic circumstances. They will settle a case quickly just to get their fee. Still other mesothelioma attorneys may be well-intended but inexperienced and inept. Asbestos litigation is a very intricate and detailed legal niche.

What if you could have the mesothelioma attorneys who pioneered asbestos litigation handle your case?  It would be like having Bill Gates install your computer’s software or Mark Zuckerberg create your Facebook page. While those two are unlikely to be available, it is really possible for you to have the mesothelioma attorneys who helped invent mesothelioma law, from the beginning, handle your case. You can be represented by Kazan Law.

Mesothelioma Attorneys with The Most Asbestos Case Experience

The founding partner of Kazan Law pioneered asbestos litigation over 40 years ago.  Today Steven Kazan is acknowledged as a leading global expert on asbestos law whose knowledge and skill continue to define this area of litigation.

Since the firm was founded by Steven Kazan in 1974, Kazan, McClain, Satterley & Greenwood, A Professional Law Corporation, has represented hundreds of people suffering from mesothelioma. They have won landmark victories and settlements totaling hundreds of millions of dollars for their clients. They have also achieved precedent-setting verdicts that have changed the way asbestos law cases are determined.

Today Kazan Law has grown to include 22 full-time mesothelioma attorneys.  But Steven Kazan, and his  partners at Kazan Law, still personally oversee every asbestos case the firm takes on. They remain as dedicated to obtaining justice for innocent working people whose lives have been jeopardized by callous profit-seeking companies as they were when they took on some of the first asbestos cases. Asbestos litigation at its best is about standing up for the rights of the little guy against big powerful corporate interests. And that is the kind of asbestos litigation expertly practiced by the mesothelioma attorneys at Kazan Law. They understand instinctively what to do because after all they were the ones who helped create asbestos litigation.

How Mesothelioma Attorneys Pioneered Asbestos Litigation

Over 40 years ago, many of the workers at the Johns-Manville plant in Lompoc, California were sick and dying.  Workers were upset about losing people they had worked with for many years. The labor union representative collected death certificates of all those who had died in the last five years and wrote a letter to someone he thought could help them.  That someone was Steven Kazan.

That was in 1974. Telephones were attached to walls, a computer took up an entire room and companies that produced asbestos-containing products were getting away with murder. Employees exposed to asbestos at work were dying from asbestosis and mesothelioma without their employers being held accountable.

In Oakland, California, at that time, Steven Kazan, a recent Harvard Law School graduate, had just started his law practice. He was already known for litigating complex medical and scientific issues, and had worked with an attorney who was trying to get workers compensation benefits for some of the men from the Pittsburg, California Johns Manville asbestos products plant.

Then, in 1974, Mr. Kazan was asked to take on litigating the civil lawsuits for those workers.  He won a precedent-setting suit for Reba Rudkin, who had developed asbestosis after 29 years of working at the Johns-Manville plant in Pittsburg, California. After winning this landmark case, he represented over 100 asbestos-affected workers from the same company.

In 1982, he won a $150,000 verdict for Bob Speake, one of the Johns-Manville workers, in a test case trial ordered by the Superior Court in Contra Costa County, CA.  This case is regarded as a “threshold verdict” because it created the opportunity for punitive damage verdicts against Johns-Manville. Months later, just as Steven Kazan was getting ready to go to settlement conferences on a large group of those cases, Johns –Manville filed for bankruptcy court protection. Steven had 393 cases pending against the company which he resolved with the trust fund set up as a result  of that bankruptcy.

Today Kazan Law is still headquartered in Oakland California. The firm’s mesothelioma attorneys continue to excel at pursuing justice for mesothelioma victims and others exposed to asbestos.  Kazan Law daily puts its 40 plus years of experience in pioneering asbestos lawsuits and setting precedents to work for its clients.

Kazan Law has remained at the forefront of asbestos litigation in California and nationally.  Kazan Law is proud of its history as pioneers in asbestos litigation. But as mesothelioma attorneys who are among the most experienced mesothelioma lawyers in the United States, we do not dwell in the past – we continue to win major settlements for our clients.

Mesothelioma Attorneys at Kazan Law Have the Expertise to Win Major Verdicts

Today well into the 21^st century, Kazan Law’s dedication to legal excellence and justice for asbestos victims continues to result in major verdicts.  These verdicts gain Kazan Law recognition in the legal profession among their peers in the United States and throughout the world. A brief list of some of the verdicts won by Kazan Law:

• $48 Million Verdict: Won by a former construction worker vs. the Union Carbide Corporation —this 2012 verdict was nationally recognized as the highest mesothelioma verdict on record for the year.
• $27 Million Verdict: Against Owens-Illinois in a lawsuit filed by the former wife of a pipe insulator.
• $11 Million Verdict: Won against Pneumo Abex  , Inc. in a wrongful death suit filed by the family of an automobile parts worker. This came after a separate $13 million award in the family’s personal injury suit.

As many activists and professionals throughout the world continue to fight for a global ban of asbestos, victims of asbestos exposure continue to contract mesothelioma and other asbestos diseases. For these people a chance to hold accountable those companies that exposed them to asbestos, pay for mounting medical bills, and provide for their families futures in the wake of their certain passing is motivation enough to seek the best and brightest asbestos litigators in the country. See what asbestos pioneers Kazan Law can do to help you and your family.

The mesothelioma attorney you choose should be someone whose reputation and experience inspires you with confidence and the people you sue with fear. But it should also be someone with whom you feel comfortable and with whom you will be able to easily talk about your situation. At Kazan Law, we have over 40 years of experience helping mesothelioma patients and their families.

Our firm helped pioneer asbestos law as it exists today. But we never forget that behind the laws and legal briefs are innocent people who are suffering because of wrongs done to them. We believe that every case is unique and all mesothelioma patients and their families deserve to be listened to and helped in any way possible. Work With a

Mesothelioma Attorney Who Listens to You

When mesothelioma symptoms have emerged and a mesothelioma diagnosis is received, that usually means that the illness is advanced and time is of the essence.  Timing is especially critical when it comes to presenting a legal case, because even the best-handled legal case can take time.  In addition to legal expertise in mesothelioma and asbestos, a good mesothelioma attorney knows a great deal about the disease itself.

At Kazan Law, we understand the challenges that you and your family face following diagnosis with an asbestos-related illness.  We also are sensitive to your need to focus on your treatment, and, protect your time with loved ones. At the same time, we also know that it is important for all involved to file your claim and gather evidence as soon as possible.  We take care of as much as possible to move your case forward while helping you to optimize your time so you can take care of yourself and be with your family instead of in a law office.

• We come to you. You do not need to travel to us.
• We do all the research. You focus on taking care of yourself and your family.
• We arrange medical liens so you get all the care you need now.
• We review all your medical bills to make sure you are not overcharged.

A Mesothelioma Attorney with Experience Makes a Difference

Asbestos law is an  intensive practice area focusing exclusively on asbestos-related disease, typically caused by occupational exposure or military service. The laws and rules regarding winning a lawsuit are complicated. Only an expert mesothelioma attorney has the experience and knowledge necessary to handle your case and secure the justice and compensation you deserve. You and your family are entitled to nothing less than the best.

At Kazan Law, we not only know asbestos law, we helped invent it. When founding partner Steven Kazan started his practice in 1974, there was no such thing as asbestos law.  There was no such thing as a mesothelioma attorney. Workers who died of mesothelioma were considered unlucky and their employers were not held responsible. As Steven Kazan began helping with workers compensation cases, he took on some of the first civil lawsuits ever filed against companies for intentionally causing fatal asbestos exposure to their workers. And he won.

Steven Kazan’s victory for the workers from the Johns-Manville plant in Pittsburg, CA is regarded as a “threshold verdict”. It created the opportunity for punitive damage verdicts against Johns-Manville and many other companies throughout the United States and the world. Kazan eventually had 393 cases pending against Johns-Manville. Although Johns-Manville lawyers could not pretend the company was innocent, they found a way to pay less to victims. They filed for bankruptcy, one of the first companies to do so as a result of asbestos litigation, and created a trust fund from which each victim would be paid a reduced amount.

A Mesothelioma Attorney Whose Advice is Sought by the US Government

As a pioneering mesothelioma attorney, Steven’s advice and experience have made him sought after by federal courts and government agencies trying to regulate corporate trust funds for asbestos victims. He is always willing to dedicate his time and wisdom to try to make sure that the interests of asbestos victims are represented in these bankruptcy reorganizations.

Steven has been appointed by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court to serve as a member or as counsel to victim members for all major asbestos bankruptcy reorganizations, including W.R. Grace, Kaiser Aluminum, Owens Corning, Fibreboard, U.S. Gypsum, General Motors, and many others.

Whenever a bankruptcy reorganization is approved, Steven is the key mesothelioma attorney in the U.S. nearly always approved by the Federal Court to serve as a member of The Trustees’ Advisory Committee on behalf of asbestos victims.

Mesothelioma Attorneys Who Win Top Settlements

As a mesothelioma attorney of historical prominence with over four decades of experience in mesothelioma law, Steven Kazan today heads a firm of 22 fulltime mesothelioma attorneys. Steven Kazan continues to be rated as one of the U.S.’s Super Lawyers along with six of his partners and associates; and the firm receives top accolades for the victories they win for mesothelioma victims.

In 2014, Kazan Law received first place for highest wrongful death verdict amount in California. This recognition was given by the California legal profession’s top publication The Recorder in its annual review of top verdicts. The $11,800,000 wrongful death verdict followed a $9 million verdict Kazan Law won the family for punitive damages for a total of $20,800,000.

Choose A Mesothelioma Attorney Who Strives to Make the World a Better Place

Any good mesothelioma attorney should also contribute to helping to find a cure for mesothelioma. We have seen close up thousands of times the toll mesothelioma takes on individuals and families.  Kazan Law has its own foundation set up for that purpose. Over the last 20 years we have given over $20 million in grants to a wide array of community and civic organizations, including $6 million for mesothelioma research. This is one way we are giving back to the community of mesothelioma patients and families whose rights we fight for as asbestos litigation attorneys.

We also believe in giving back to the community our law practice calls home as well as communities all across the US by supporting programs that help provide relief to the poor, distressed or under-privileged everywhere.

Another way we try to help is by having a top mesothelioma attorney on our staff work full-time on better laws to protect workers.  Frances Schreiberg, who has many decades of experience, works with unions for free to get CalOsha and the California legislature to try to eliminate the workplace hazards that lead to mesothelioma and other causes of injury and death.