Machinist

Age:  68

Settlement:  $1.4 Million

D.L. and his wife of 43 years contacted us from their home in New  Jersey approximately eight months after he had been diagnosed with  mesothelioma. Clapper, Patti, Schweizer & Mason traveled to his home immediately, in order to determine how he had been exposed  to asbestos.

For the last 45 years, D.L. owned a landscaping business. However, in the 1950s, D.L. served in the U.S. Navy. It was here, aboard ships, where  he came into contact with multiple products containing asbestos that  eventually resulted in his illness. After obtaining the naval archive records for the ship on which D.L. served, as well as interviewing others who served on the ship, we were able to determine the specific manufacturers  of the asbestos–containing products.

We also discovered that D.L.  performed numerous brake and clutch jobs on his own cars and trucks. This is a common way for exposure to asbestos to occur, and we included the manufacturers of these asbestos–containing products in our suit, along with those mentioned above.

We filed D.L.’s case in San Francisco, California. Due to his illness, the court in San Francisco granted an early trial date. This trial, though, never  occurred. All of the defendants settled before trial for a large total  recovery.