Congratulations to Steven Kazan, Founding, Senior and Managing Partner of Kazan Law on this achievement!

Attorney Steven Kazan was honored with the Edward I. Pollock Award at the Consumer Attorneys of California’s 2017 Convention. The award was given “in recognition of many years of dedication, outstanding efforts and effectiveness on behalf of the causes and ideals” of consumer attorneys. He has spent more than four decades fighting on behalf of victims of mesothelioma, asbestos lung cancer and asbestosis, and his firm’s Kazan McClain Partners’ Foundation has made significant contributions to medical research facilities that are seeking treatment for asbestos-related diseases.
 

View the Award Ceremony Video Below

In an effort to escape their massive legal liabilities, many large companies that used asbestos in their products or working environments have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. In order to make sure that victims of asbestos-related diseases are compensated fairly, the U.S. Congress has determined that these companies must establish an asbestos trust fund when they file for bankruptcy protection. This ensures that future victims will be able to get the financial compensation they deserve.
 

History of Asbestos as a Material

Beginning in the 1800s, asbestos became widely used by a variety of manufacturers because it was cheap, flexible, and durable. It was also a material that provided insulation and was fireproof. Construction, shipbuilding, and manufacturing companies in particular began using the material in large quantities.
 

Asbestos Lawsuits

A hundred years ago, the industry knew asbestos was killing people. By 1940, they knew it caused cancer, and by 1960, companies were well aware of the connection between asbestos and mesothelioma. This affected a variety of companies, including those that produced products containing asbestos, or those who used asbestos in their operations. Since the link between lung disease and asbestos was clear, these companies began to be overwhelmed with lawsuits from the people they had exposed to asbestos. As a result, many of these companies felt they had no choice but to file for bankruptcy.
 

Establishment of Trust Funds

Many companies filing for bankruptcy hoped that they would be able to limit their asbestos liability. Thanks to section 524(g) of the bankruptcy code under Chapter 11,the legal system did not allow them to entirely escape their obligations to their victims. Companies were ordered to establish asbestos trust funds, which were to be run as separate organizations requiring new trustees, separate from the original company.
 

Determining Claim Eligibility

The most essential requirement necessary in order to file a claim to a trust fund is the ability to prove that the victim was exposed to a certain company or product that contained asbestos, and was diagnosed with an asbestos related disease as a result. Every trust fund is able to set its own eligibility criteria, and the best way to determine if you are eligible is to contact an experienced attorney who specializes in trust fund related claims.
 

Receiving Payment

If your claim is approved, the trust will make a payment offer to you and your attorney. This is typically a percentage of the full value that has been allotted to whichever lung disease that you might have. For example, when a trust was established, schedules were set for claimants with mesothelioma, different amounts established for those with asbestos lung cancer and other amounts for other asbestos diseases

If you or your loved one has been a victim of asbestos exposure, it’s important to seek the help of a trusted and experienced legal professional. You will most likely be dealing with companies who have years of experience in trying to pay as little possible to their victims. While the establishment of the trust funds does provide you some protection, having a skilled professional on your side can greatly increase your chance of receiving fair compensation.

Asbestos was used frequently from the beginning of the 20th century in a variety of building materials. In the 1970s, the public learned what the asbestos industry had known for 60 years – that asbestos is highly toxic and that inhaling its fibers can cause lung scarring, lung cancer, and mesothelioma.

Although asbestos is no longer used in building materials, many older structures still contain the substance. Asbestos is most commonly found in ceiling insulation, but it is also often found in other materials, including:

• Dry wall joint patching compounds
• Stove or pipe insulation
• Floor tiles
• Furnaces and duct work
• Roofing materials

Testing

It’s usually impossible to detect asbestos fibers with a generic visual inspection. According to California asbestos regulations, only licensed professionals with specialized equipment are allowed to detect and report on asbestos presence. They will send their findings to a lab for further testing, where technicians will determine the type and concentration of asbestos, and thus confirm whether the building is dangerous.

If lab technicians determine that a home is dangerous due to the presence of asbestos, the homeowner has three options:

1. Hire a professional to remove the asbestos.
2. Use sealants to contain the fibers.
3. Continue to live in the dangerous environment.

#1-Professional removal is the best choice for dangerous conditions.

#2-Sealants are next best, but are not always adequate to protect families and construction workers from asbestos exposure during renovation or demolition projects. Asbestos removal is recommended if a home or building is to be renovated or demolished.

#3-doing nothing is by far the worst choice!
 

Certification

California asbestos law requires employees and contractors working on asbestos projects greater than 100 square feet with an asbestos concentration above 0.1 percent to register with the Asbestos Contractors’ Registration Organization. Anyone handling asbestos must have certification. There are five types of certification:

• Worker
• Supervisor or contractor
• Building inspector
• Project designer
• Management planner

Different certifications have different courses and requirements, but all must be completed in a state-certified training facility. Certifications must be renewed each year.
 

Abatement

California asbestos law has strict regulations for asbestos abatement. On an abatement site, all workers must wear respirators and multiple layers of protective clothing.

There are four classes of abatement operations, and the class determines the regulations and procedures. Class I involves the removal of asbestos in thermal system [furnaces and duct work] insulation. Class II involves asbestos abatement in floor tiles, roofing, wallboard, sheeting, and construction materials. With both classes, projects must be completed in an enclosed and regulated area. All materials containing asbestos must be soaked in water before removal to limit airborne asbestos fibers, which are dangerous carcinogens. All asbestos-containing materials must also be intact when removed unless deemed impossible by the contractor.

Class III operations involve repair or maintenance work. They follow the same California asbestos regulations as Classes I and II, but they don’t allow the dry cutting of asbestos-containing materials. No asbestos-containing materials can be dropped or thrown on the ground. Instead, they must be carefully lowered and stored with “danger” signs.

Class IV operations involve maintenance or custodial work where employees contact but don’t disturb the asbestos. Those making contact with the asbestos and those performing other work in the regulated area must wear respirators and protective clothing.

The state of California requires everyone who handles asbestos to receive thorough training and education. Anyone involved in asbestos abatement in California should know the regulations for all classes of operations.

Asbestos use in the U.S. has dropped by 90% in the past two years, according to just-released data. An amazing 80% drop occurred just from 2013 to 2014. This is very good news for all Americans. It is clear that there is no safe level of asbestos use. Any amount of asbestos exposure can cause mesothelioma, an aggressive cancer for which there is no cure. Regardless of the asbestos lobby’s attempts to characterize certain asbestos types as safe, no type of asbestos is safe for human exposure. Asbestos remains a deadly mineral with horrible health consequences.

Asbestos Use Steep Decline Reported by US Geological Survey

Asbestos use data showing the steep decline in the US was reported by the US Geological Survey. The data was part of its annual report on the global asbestos trade for the United Nations (UN) Commodity Trade Statistics Database. Asbestos use monitoring falls under the purview of the US Geological Survey because asbestos is a mineral mined from below the earth’s surface.

US asbestos use for the last few years according to the new report is:

2012   1560 tons

2013   745 tons

2014   144 tons

This data is all the more remarkable given that asbestos use remains legal for many types of products in the U.S. It reflects a great victory on the part of anti-asbestos advocates who have raised awareness of the dangers of asbestos. It is also a tragic victory for those who have successfully sued businesses for knowingly exposing them to asbestos, causing them to develop mesothelioma and die.

To put this new data into perspective, consider that in 1973, at the peak of asbestos use in the US, the US Geological Survey reported that a record 803,000 metric tons of asbestos were used in this country. Of that, 137,000 tons came from U.S. mines and most of the rest was imported from Canada.

Asbestos Use and Export Remains High In Some Countries

Asbestos is now banned in 52 countries, and safer materials have replaced asbestos use in many products. But there are many countries that still actively mine asbestos for export and the report highlights which countries continue to export the most of this extremely dangerous substance. And also which countries continue to import it despite its hazards being well-known for decades.

The US Geological Survey’s new asbestos report shows that in 2014 the top five producing and using countries remained about the same as in 2013. The report also highlights that global asbestos production and asbestos use has stayed steady at around 2 million tons per year. Please note that Russia, one of the world’s main asbestos-producing countries, has not yet reported its 2014 data to the UN, so the numbers shown are USGS estimates.

For much of Europe, asbestos use for 2014 is as low and in many cases lower than in the U.S. Asbestos use by France is at zero level. Italy, which once had a huge asbestos mining industry, is not far behind at 6 tons of asbestos use for the year.

However, for Europe’s two former Soviet Union countries, the numbers tell a different story. For Belarus, the total is 7,832 and for Ukraine it is even higher at 24,743 tons. But the dubious distinction of the country with the highest amount of asbestos use in not only Europe but in the entire world is Russia itself. According to US Geological Survey estimates for this year, Russia produced a startling 1,100,000 tons of asbestos. It exported half of it and used the rest at home.

There is hardly any asbestos use reported for Africa except for Zimbabwe which imported 5,997 tons of asbestos.

The biggest asbestos user in North America is Mexico with 12,179 tons. Not even a close second is El Salvador at 730 tons, with Canada third at 378 tons and the US fourth with 144 tons. Worth noting here is that Aruba, Barbados, Belize and Jamaica are all at zero asbestos use so those may be better travel options than Mexico. Who wants to bring home mesothelioma as a souvenir?

In South America, Venezuela at 4 tons and Argentina at 100 tons are among the lowest. Brazil produced 284,000 tons of asbestos and exported about half of it.

Second only to Russia in world asbestos use is China which used 507,016 tons of asbestos last year. Third place sadly goes to India with 370,011 tons of asbestos use. China’s asbestos use declined slightly from last year according to the data while Russia’s slightly increased and India’s significantly increased.

Here’s Hoping U.S. Asbestos Use Decline Continues and Spreads

The following facts about asbestos use remain clear:

• All forms of asbestos are proven to cause cancer
• All forms of asbestos can cause mesothelioma, lung, laryngeal, ovarian and gastrointestinal cancers
• No level of asbestos exposure is without risk
• Victims of asbestos-caused cancers often die painful lingering deaths
• Eliminating asbestos use would prevent many of these deaths

So it is a cause for celebration that asbestos use in the U.S. has declined so steeply in the past few years. Let us hope this downward trend continues and that next year’s US Geological Report to the UN shows that asbestos use in the US has completely disappeared. Let us also hope that this trend spreads around the globe to other countries so that much needless human suffering and loss can be prevented in the years to come.

A global asbestos warning at long last is the hoped for outcome of the United Nations Rotterdam Convention currently underway in Geneva, Switzerland. It is an ongoing struggle because of the powerful international asbestos industry interests that profit by keeping things just as they are. But anti-asbestos advocates and Convention delegates who are concerned about human health continue to hope for change. This year we may finally see the changes we long have sought.

Asbestos Warning Part of the Bigger Picture at Rotterdam

Asbestos warning attempts are part of the bigger picture of the UN’s Rotterdam Convention. The Convention focuses on pesticides and industrial chemicals that are of global concern for health or environmental reasons. It is basically a multilateral treaty to promote shared responsibilities in relation to the exporting and importing of hazardous chemicals and materials.

Under the Rotterdam Convention, countries nominate chemicals for inclusion in the international PIC (prior informed consent) list.

Impact of Rotterdam Convention PIC List

The PIC listing is a warning, not a ban. The chemicals included on the list are subject to extensive information exchange and obligations related to international trade. Exporting nations are required to provide documentation on the nature of the substance so that importers can make informed decision as to whether or not they are capable of using it safely.

A regulatory decision to place a chemical or material like asbestos on the PIC list for health or environmental reasons is circulated to all involved countries. It has ramifications for exporting and importing products and can impact trade. This is why asbestos-exporting companies encourage their nation’s delegation to vote against adding asbestos to the PIC warning list.

Asbestos Warning Fits Rotterdam Convention Objectives

Asbestos warning labels worldwide clearly fit the objectives of the Rotterdam Convention. The text was adopted on September 10, 1998 at a UN conference in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

The official objectives of the Convention are:

• Promote shared responsibility and cooperative efforts among nations in the international trade of certain hazardous materials in order to protect human health and the environment from potential harm
• Contribute to the environmentally sound use of those hazardous materials, by facilitating information exchange about their characteristics, by providing for a national decision-making process on their import and export and by disseminating these decisions worldwide

Asbestos Warning Signs Greet Industry Lobbyists

Signs calling for an asbestos warning are displayed on the sides of buses and trains throughout the city of Geneva as asbestos industry lobbyists arrive from pro-asbestos countries Russia, India, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Vietnam and Brazil.

The asbestos warning signs are sponsored by labor unions including IndustriALL Global Union and its affiliates The Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union and The Construction, Forestry Mining and Energy Union. Their messages state:

Asbestos = Death – Every five minutes someone dies from asbestos exposure – For the global ban on all asbestos.

Stop all trade in deadly asbestos – 2 million tons of asbestos are used every year – For the global ban of all asbestos.

Asbestos: all products still deadly – 125 million people in the world are exposed to asbestos at work – For the global ban of all asbestos.

Asbestos Warning Hinted At By UN Official

Asbestos warnings through inclusion on the PIC list have been put forward before at previous Rotterdam Conventions but have not passed because of the influence of asbestos industry lobbyists; notably those from Canada. This time may be different.

The International Ban Asbestos Secretariat (IBAS), a London-based asbestos monitoring organization, reports that Baskut Tuncak, a UN special envoy on the implications for human rights of the environmentally sound management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes, said in an official statement that he is “deeply troubled” by the behavior of vested interests who “continue to obstruct the listing of asbestos (as a banned substance) under the Rotterdam Convention…”

Asbestos Ban Previously Thwarted by Canada

At the 2011 Rotterdam Convention, the Canadian delegation surprised many with a refusal to allow the addition of chrysotile asbestos to the official Rotterdam Convention list of substances that require a warning label.

There is some indication that this time around, they may have changed their minds. As IBAS stated in their recent newsletter, “Whether chrysotile will be listed this time around is anybody’s guess. If the industry veto is ended, then the Rotterdam Convention may begin to fulfill its potential.” We can only hope.