Payments are calculated based on the years of exposure, type of work, and severity of illness
Before seeking legal assistance to recover compensation, you must have a diagnosis that is related to asbestos exposure. In the absence of a clear diagnosis, you cannot qualify for compensation from asbestos trust funds and, if you are a veteran, from the VA as well. A medical specialist with vast experience in diagnosing diseases that stem from asbestos exposure will be able to assign you a correct and accurate diagnosis. Your medical documents must state the causal relation between your diseases and occupational/military exposure. The following are the compensation estimates for each cancer caused by asbestos exposure.
Disclaimer: The amount of compensation received greatly varies based on the years of exposure, type of work, and severity of the diagnosis.
- mesothelioma: $1,000,000 - $1,400,000
- lung cancer: $100,000 - $700,000
- esophageal cancer: $100,000 - $700,000
- throat cancer: $100,000 - $500,000
- gastrointestinal cancer: $50,000 - $100,000
- colorectal cancer: $50,000 - $100,000
Another factor that is bound to impact the compensation your claim will result in is the percentage the asbestos trust fund in question is currently using. Depending on their financial resources, each asbestos trust fund liquidates a certain percentage of the entire value of a claim, which may range between 1% and 100%. The average percentage, however, is around 25%. For instance, if your claim is worth $300,000 and the percentage of the asbestos trust fund you file with is 37% at the moment, you will receive $111,000. The size of the asbestos trust fund can also influence its percentage.
The number of claimants may prevent you from obtaining a greater amount of money
If you or your attorney submit your asbestos claim during a time when plenty of other former employees do the same, the percentage of the trust fund may drop as a consequence and you will thereby be paid out less. This is only one of the reasons why it is highly recommended to work with a lawyer specialized in cases of asbestos exposure, who will be able to accurately evaluate your circumstances and guide you towards the optimal legal solution.
With nearly 30 years of experience with personal injury cases involving asbestos exposure, our attorneys and legal experts will help you recover the compensation you deserve with minimal involvement on your part. Our standard fee is a 40% contingency fee. This means we only charge the fee when we obtain financial compensation for a client. If we do not recover any money, our clients do not have to pay our law firm anything.
There are numerous factors that may influence your financial compensation
After filing a claim, the asbestos trust fund you submitted it to along with evidence of your work and medical history will process it according to the review you or your lawyer chose. There are three types of reviews the value of a claim can be assessed by, which can influence the amount of compensation you will eventually receive, as follows:
- expedited review – while this option will provide you with compensation in a relatively short time, the amount of money is fixed, based on your diagnosis, and non-negotiable
- individual review – opting for this type of claim processing will grant you compensation within a longer time, but your lawyer will be able to negotiate the sum of money so that you will benefit from the maximum amount possible
- extraordinary review – this applies for special circumstances only, such as when the claimant has worked for a single employer for several years in a row and may provide you with a larger amount of money than expedited review if you meet the requirements
The disease you suffer from also plays a crucial role in deciding the compensation your asbestos claim will result in. Notwithstanding the awful nature of all diseases brought about by occupational asbestos exposure, a scale of severity has been set by trustees – those who manage asbestos trust funds – to determine how profoundly a claimant's illness affects their physical and emotional life on a daily basis.
Accordingly, mesothelioma is at top of the list. Consequently, people with a mesothelioma diagnosis will receive the largest sum of money in compensation for their injury. However, if you struggle with lung cancer or another malignant disease, we highly encourage you to file a claim with the help of a specialized attorney, as you, too, might be paid a considerable sum of money for your suffering.
Finally, it is very important to note that if you are a veteran struggling with a disease caused by asbestos exposure in the military and want to file a claim, you will have to send our skilled attorneys your military records, which you must retrieve, and your medical records. These documents will serve as a starting point for our legal team to review your case and determine whether you are eligible for compensation.