Attorney Nicholas Vogelzang settled yet another mesothelioma case for an undisclosed high dollar amount on November 8, 2016, at the Daley Center in Cook County. His client was the wife of a union electrician out of IBEW Local 134 in Chicago. She had laundered his clothing throughout his working career. Most notably she shook out his clothes and washed them during the time period of the 1960’s and 1970’s while he was working with numerous asbestos-containing products. The defendants that were part of the settlement manufactured products such as pumps, valves, asbestos-insulated wire and joint compound. The plaintiff’s husband had worked all over Chicago including the McCormick Place, the John Hancock, Allstate Insurance and numerous other commercial locations throughout Cook County.
The plaintiff continues to undergo chemotherapy for her mesothelioma. She was diagnosed with the asbestos cancer in the summer of 2015 and knew immediately that the cause was from the dust on her husband’s clothes. The tragic reason for her familiarity was that her sister passed from the same disease several years earlier. Her sister had also been exposed to asbestos dust from her husband’s clothing.
This trial proceeded like many before in that the defendants took the plaintiff’s deposition, asking what her husband’s occupation had been and how frequently she performed laundry for her husband. Attorney Nicholas Vogelzang was also able to locate a co-worker of the plaintiff’s husband, since the husband had passed away from heart trouble many years earlier. The co-worker had retired to a small lake in Arkansas but remembered his Chicago electrician days well with the plaintiff’s husband. He testified in a deposition regarding all the different asbestos-containing products that they had worked with together and how the dust was on their clothes at the end of the day. In addition, the plaintiff’s son gave a deposition regarding his work with his father doing residential side work on Saturdays using asbestos-containing caulk and joint compound. After these Saturday morning work sessions the plaintiff would again launder the asbestos-laden clothing of her son and husband, further exposing her to the deadly dust.
The plaintiff was very happy with her representation and grateful that she could use the money to go toward her medical bills and help out her family. If you or a loved one receives a diagnosis of mesothelioma, getting proper representation and getting it quickly is crucial to the case. Vogelzang Law has been helping families with mesothelioma for over 15 years. They have worked with clients from all different union trades including pipe-fitters, electricians, sheet metal workers, boilermakers, carpenters, laborers, mechanics, engineers, janitors, insulators and many more. In addition, they have represented clients who haven’t worked in the trades but were exposed to asbestos in unique ways for very short time periods. Sitting down with an attorney can help flush out all possible asbestos exposures. An attorney at Vogelzang Law can help as early as today, the phone number is 312.466.1669.
