New York Personal Injury Laws

Plumbers Exposed to Asbestos

Did you know that plumbers were exposed to asbestos during the construction of the World Trade Center? Hi, I’m Joe Williams. I’m a mesothelioma trial attorney here in New York City, and I can give you some information about the types of exposures to asbestos that plumbers faced during the construction of the World Trade Center site.

Large Quantities of Exposure

The World Trade Center site, composed of seven different buildings, was a massive construction project, and the plumbers union had a very large presence during the building of the seven buildings. The buildings at this site required massive quantities of water, hot water and cold water piping running throughout the site. The plumbers’ work at the World Trade Center site exposed them to asbestos in the form of asbestos pipe covering, asbestos gaskets, asbestos insulation that covered the equipment that the plumbers worked with on a daily basis at the World Trade Center site. In addition to their own work, the plumbers who worked at the World Trade Center site could have also been exposed to the work of other trades – trades who are working with asbestos-containing floor tile, or asbestos-containing joint compound, or asbestos-containing fireproofing – exposed as bystanders to the work of others.

You have questions about mesothelioma and exposures to asbestos at the World Trade Center. I’m Joe Williams, and at our firm we handle cases everyday for mesothelioma victims and their families. I invite you to give our office a call. We can answer your questions. Thank you.

Suing Your Employer

When you’re injured on the job, you’re not permitted to sue your employer unless you work for the railroad or maritime industries. However, if you’ve been injured as a result of the negligence of a third-party, you may have a basis for a lawsuit.

Workers’ compensation laws bar you from suing your employer or a co-worker. You need an experienced law firm who understands what’s involved and how to analyze the facts and circumstances of your own claim to know if you in fact have a basis for a lawsuit.

The New York Labor Law requires full protection and safety devices to prevent workers from sustaining injuries when working at heights. Failure to do so can impose 100% liability for your injuries.

Being injured on the job can leave you wondering, “What’s going to happen to my future?” If you’ve been injured on the job, contact me or visit my website to find out how I can help turn your life around.

Putting Together a Mesothelioma Case

How is a lawsuit started for a mesothelioma victim? Hi. I’m Joe Williams. I’m a mesothelioma trial attorney in New York City. I can tell you that the first thing that is done to start a mesothelioma case, is a very thorough investigation.

 Gathering Evidence

And one of the most important parts of that investigation is, a conversation with the victim of mesothelioma and with their family. And during those conversations, and they’re just general talks in the victim’s home, we talk about all the ways that that victim could have been exposed to asbestos during the course of their life.

In all the different settings, whether it’ll be at work, at home, through family members, environmentally. We talk about all the possible exposures that that particular person could have had. We then take that information and do a thorough work-up of the case.

An investigation of job sites, of different places where exposure to asbestos could have happened for this particular victim. We then take all that information and we formulate a legal document. It’s called a summons and complaint.

 What To Do With the Evidence

And a summons and complaint is the document that starts off a legal case. It basically accuses the defendants, the companies the cases are brought against, of wrongdoing as it relates to this particular mesothelioma victim.

That document is prepared, and because mesothelioma victims are suffering, and because time is of the essence, and timing is very important, it’s important to know that in New York state and in many states, we are able to file this document electronically.

We file it immediately. It’s filed electronically, and then we serve the document through our process service on these companies in every state in the United States. And this whole process can happen within days.

We move at light speed with respect to mesothelioma cases because of the nature of this disease. You may have many more questions about how a mesothelioma case is started, and we can provide the answers to your questions.

I’m Joe Williams. At our office we represent mesothelioma victims and their families every day. These are the kinds of cases that we handle each and every day, and we’ll be happy to answer your questions. I encourage you to call the number on your screen below, that’s my office number, and we’ll answer your questions. Thank you.

Two Different Judicial Systems

Here in the United States, we have two separate and distinct judicial systems. Each state has its own court system, and the US Government has its own federal court system. An experienced attorney is going to know exactly whether or not your case belongs in state or federal court. At the Maurer Law Firm, we will be able to evaluate your case and tell you what’s in your best interest. If you have questions about where your case needs to be brought, call the Maurer Law Firm. I’ll be able to tell you exactly whether or not your case should be in state or federal court.

Tip On Insurance Policies

I’m Ira Maurer, with a public service law tip. If you’re a driver in New York, you’re insurance policy must have coverage for underinsured uninsured drivers. That means if you get in an accident with someone who doesn’t have an insurance policy as required by law, your own insurance still will provide a benefit of at least $25,000 for each individual who’s injured, maximum coverage, and a maximum of $50,000 for all injuries from one single accident.

That’s not very much money, and if you get seriously injured it won’t go anywhere near what’s necessary to compensate you for your injuries and help you deal with the financial losses. You can purchase more insurance if you call up your insurance agent, for a relatively minor sum – hundreds of dollars – you can get hundreds of thousands of dollars of additional coverage. This is a no-brainer. So if you’re a driver in New York, you should purchase additional uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage.

For more information, contact the Maurer Law Firm by going to maurerlaw.net

Medical Malpractice in Sayville

Today on You Be The Judge. With hospitals being administered by fallible human beings, mistakes are inevitable. While hospitals have full disclosure agreements with their patients, you might be surprised to find out what happens after mistakes are made. The Center for Disease Control says tens of millions of people receive hospital services each year.

Examples of Malpractice

Over the decades the hospital industry has evolved and made necessary changes to protect patients. Nevertheless, hospitals are run by humans, and the unfortunate truth is that they make mistakes that put patients lives at risk. Researchers have long investigated medication errors. These errors show up in a variety of forms, including improper compounding the process of tailoring-made drugs for an individual, incorrectly writing out prescriptions, failing to monitor effects on patients, giving the wrong kind of medication, and administering too high or too low of a dosage.

Reporting Mistakes

A study led by Doctor Daniel Nussbaum showed that hospital employees are more likely to report mistakes under the protection of Blame-free anonymity. By giving these employees a safe environment to report mistakes, hospitals are then able to assess the reports and make appropriate changes. Before, they had very little information to work with. This progress is a good sign for both hospitals and patients.

Medication Errors Study

A recent study led by Doctor Assad Latif, examine medication errors and what happens afterward. Doctor Latif shared that, for the most part our findings were in keeping with what the existing literature tells us about the where and how of medication errors in a hospital. The most surprising finding was what we do about them.

Latif said about 98% of mistakes did not result in harming patients. However the patient and or their family is immediately informed when an error occurs barely 2% of the time despite literature supporting full disclosure and their desire to be promptly informed. Letting patients know about medication errors only 2% of the time sounds pretty scaring, doesn’t it?

Hospitals Make Mistakes

We should not assume that all medication errors threaten anyone’s well-being, or that the information would always be of importance to the patient. However, harmful mistakes do occur without patients knowing it. What do you think hospitals should do to ensure that the promised full disclosure is being fulfilled?

By: Edward Lake

Railroad Workers Exposed to Asbestos

How were railroad workers exposed to asbestos, and what can they do about it if they get mesothelioma? Hi, I’m Joe Williams, I’m a mesothelioma trial attorney and I want to talk to you about the types of exposures that workers on the railroad would have confronted during the course of their working career.

Protection With FELA statute

The first thing you need to know is that railroad employees are protected under the FELA statute. It’s a federal statute, the Federal Employers Liability Act, which requires the railroad to provide a safe working environment for their railroad employees. So if the railroad was negligent and not providing a safe working atmosphere, and if the employee gets sick and gets mesothelioma as a result, the railroad can be held legally responsible for that.

 A Former Client

Let me illustrate this by talking to you about a former client of my office who was a railroad worker. Now, this railroad worker worked on locomotives and trains as well as the cars themselves and he was exposed to asbestos from the insulation on the exhaust system of the locomotives, to asbestos from the controls and switches in the electrical components of the cars themselves, and he was exposed to asbestos from the work that others did around him with asbestos containing brakes that existed on the cars. There was also iron brakes, but some of them were made of asbestos. All of these exposures contributed during the course of a working lifetime to, unfortunately, give this client mesothelioma, and when he was diagnosed with mesothelioma he wanted to know what he could do about it. After an understanding that the FELA statute was designed to protect him, he was able to bring a claim against the railroad under the FELA statute.

Now why am I telling you this? It’s because you have questions about mesothelioma and the types of exposures that railroad workers would confront on the job. I’m Joe Williams, at my law firm we represent mesothelioma victims each and every day, and we deal with issues like this every day. If you have questions I invite you to contact our office. We are here to answer your questions. Thank you for listening.

Auto Mechanic Asbestos Exposure

You were a professional auto mechanic, and you worked with asbestos-containing brakes your entire life. Now you’ve been diagnosed with Mesothelioma. Hi, I’m Joe Williams. I’m a Mesothelioma trial attorney here in New City, and I can answer your questions.

 How One Auto Mechanic Was Exposed

I can do that by talking to you about some clients I’ve represented in the past. One client in particular, who was a former auto mechanic, and changed thousands of brakes on automobiles. In his deposition, he testified about the work that he did. He talked about using both OEM, Original Equipment Manufactured brake linings, which are brake linings manufactured by the same company that made the car.

He also used after market brake linings, which are manufactured by companies who didn’t manufacture the car. They just manufactured brake linings. What he would do, this former client of mine, he would take off the four wheels of the car after the car was put on a lift. He would remove the brakes. He would blow out the drum with an air compressor, causing a lot of dust in the air.

He would then take the new metal shoe with the attached brake lining out of the box, and install it into the vehicle, wheel by wheel. This process of removing the old brake, blowing out the drum, handling the asbestos-containing brake lining, the new one, and installing them into the vehicle, exposed him to asbestos dust. He did this work every day, and he did it for many decades, and was exposed to asbestos dust thousands of times from working on asbestos-containing brake linings in automobiles.

Now, if you’re an auto mechanic, you’ve probably had some very similar exposures. I’m sure you have questions about Mesothelioma and how auto mechanics were exposed to asbestos. I’m Joe Williams, and in our firm we handle cases every day for Mesothelioma victims. We can answer your questions. I invite you to call our office at the number below, and we’ll answer your questions. Thank you.

Boiler Makers Exposed to Asbestos

You’re a boiler maker, and you built boilers and powerhouses in large industrial and commercial buildings. Now, you’ve been diagnosed with mesothelioma and you’re trying to figure out all the ways that you could have been exposed to asbestos.

Hi. I’m Joe Williams. I’m a mesothelioma trial attorney in New York City, and I can answer questions about the ways that boiler makers were exposed to asbestos.

A union boiler maker built the boilers in the powerhouses, built the boilers in the largest structures in the cities in America. I can talk to you about one particular client of mine who was a union boiler maker, who worked in the local powerhouses here in New York City. His work involved construction and erecting huge multistory boilers, in some circumstances ten stories high, in powerhouses, in power generating stations. This work involved working with and sawing with a saw asbestos block, mixing asbestos cement and applying it to different parts of this boiler apparatus, using this mixed asbestos cement and applying it to steam pipes and hot water pipes, working with flange gaskets, cutting asbestos-containing gaskets to put between metal flanges on pipes, working with packing inside of valves and inside of pumps. This boiler maker that I’m speaking of, this former client of mine, was exposed to asbestos in all of these ways.

These are just some of the exposures that a boiler maker would have. You have questions about how a boiler maker was exposed to asbestos? We can answer those questions. I’m Joe Williams. At our office, we represent victims of mesothelioma everyday. I invite you to call our office at the number below and we’ll answer your questions. Thank you.