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New Jersey is home to 38 asbestos mines and natural deposits of asbestos. New Jersey had operations for W.R. Grace, notably involved in the contamination of vermiculite ore out of the Libby, Montana mine. Seven New Jersey refineries received contaminated vermiculite from Libby. In the process, workers were exposed to the dangerous substance as the material was processed into various products. One facility was responsible for processing more than 100,000 tons of the contaminated materials. This facility was later classified as an EPA Superfund Site. The seven facilities processed more than 2,500 Libby shipments, resulting in exposure to 338,000 tons of contaminated vermiculite.
Outside the mining industry, many workers were exposed to asbestos from industrial applications. New Jersey is a boon for many industries, including manufacturing processed food, chemical development, textile manufacturing and the manufacture of electric equipment. Asbestos was often used in factories because of its ability to resist heat, chemicals and electricity
Additionally, New Jersey had a thriving shipping industry when asbestos was commonly used. It had eight shipyards that employed more than 376,000 workers in addition to several military bases including two Navy bases; the NWS Earle and the NAES Lakehurst. These individuals may have been at an elevated risk of developing mesothelioma since ships often contain many components that have asbestos in them and therefore may have grounds for a lawsuit or claim to recover compensation.
Some large manufacturers that have now become notoriously linked with asbestos exposure had operations in New Jersey, including Johns Manville Products Corporation, which opened its first plant in central New Jersey early in the 20th century. By 1923, the company manufactured over 200 different products.
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New Jersey Asbestos Regulatory Agencies
New Jersey Asbestos & Mesothelioma Diagnoses
New Jersey Laws Concerning Asbestos
New Jersey Statute Of Limitations
New Jersey Asbestos Trust Funds
New Jersey Mesothelioma Verdicts and Settlements
New Jersey Asbestos Exposure Site List
New Jersey Mesothelioma Law Firm
New Jersey Mesothelioma Diagnoses
New Jersey is ranked eight in the United States for mesothelioma and asbestosis-related diagnoses according to CDC reports. The state has an annual mesothelioma cancer diagnosis rate of 11.8 people per million. Somerset, Gloucester and Salem Counties have the highest diagnosis rates for mesothelioma in the state. Between 1999 and 2015, there were at least 1,576 New Jersey residents who who were diagnosed with mesothelioma. Additionally, a minimum of 1,074 New Jersey residents were diagnosed with asbestosis and more than 6,716 residents developed non-mesothelioma lung cancer.
Cities in New Jersey where the majority of diagnoses have occurred: Jersey City – Newark – Paterson – Elizabeth – Woodbridge – Edison – Lakewood
New Jersey Asbestos Laws
New Jersey has several laws related to asbestos, including how asbestos is defined and which regulatory agencies have the authority to enforce asbestos laws. There are also laws pertaining to when an asbestos claim can be brought and what the plaintiff in a lawsuit must prove in such a lawsuit.
Statute of Limitations
New Jersey has a two-year statute of limitations to bring a personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit. For personal injury claims, the two years usually begins on the date the injury first occurred. Such a limited timeframe can be problematic in mesothelioma cases because it often takes decades after exposure for symptoms to manifest. However, New Jersey uses a discovery rule that delays statute of limitations from ticking until the individual discovered their injury or should have reasonably known about it. In many mesothelioma cases, the clock does not start to tick until the individual has been diagnosed with mesothelioma.
Court Exposure Standard
In order for a plaintiff in New Jersey to prevail on a mesothelioma claim, he or she must meet medical causation. This requires showing that each defendant’s product was a substantial factor in the plaintiff developing mesothelioma or another asbestos-related condition. To meet this burden, the plaintiff must provide evidence that he or she was frequently, regularly and proximately exposed to the product in question. Additionally, he or she must establish the connection between the exposure and the condition.
New Jersey State Asbestos Regulatory Agencies
The New Jersey Department of Health is responsible for enforcing environmental laws on the state level. Any contractor who performs work to remove asbestos in a home or business must be licensed by the state. Those who abate asbestos-containing materials must have a license issued by the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workplace Development.
New Jersey Asbestos Definition
The Asbestos Control and Licensing Act defines asbestos as “the asbestiform varieties of chrysotile (serpentine); crocidolite (riebeckite); amosite (cummingtonitegrunerite); anthophyllite; termolite; and actinolite.” It also defines an asbestos-containing material as “any material which contains more than 1% asbestos by weight.”
New Jersey Asbestos Site Exposure
Some of the most notable New Jersey sites where workers and others could have been exposed to asbestos include:
- R. Grace Zonolite Facility – Hamilton Township
- New York Shipbuilding Company – Camden
- Burlington Shipyard – Hoboken
- Todd Shipyard – Hoboken
- New Jersey Power and Light Company – Dover
- Powerhouse Essex Station – Newardk
- Johns-Manville Products Corporation – Manville
- Toms River Chemical Corporation – Toms River
- Tennaco Chemical Company – Belleville
- Heyden Chemical Corporation – Princeton
- Mutual Chemical Company of America – Jersey City
- Union Plastics Corporation – Hillside
- M. Plastics Moulding Company – Trenton
- Celanese Plastics – Belvidere
- Wheaton Plastics Company – Lakewood
- O. Polymer – Sparta
- Repauno Construction – Gibbstown
- National Gypsum Company – Garwood
- Vespi Construction – Atlantic City
- United States Testing Company, Inc. – Hoboken
- Rutgers University – Newark
- Naval Weapons Station – Earle
- R. Grace Wayne Interim Storage Site – Passaic County
New Jersey Asbestos Trusts
After asbestos companies faced hundreds or thousands of lawsuits alleging that they were liable for exposing workers, consumers and third parties to asbestos, many of these companies declared bankruptcy to shield themselves from this liability. Some of these companies established special asbestos trusts that were responsible for paying claims from individuals who sustained damages to the company’s actions. If an asbestos trust is available, a claimant can make a claim against it without going through the entire process of litigation. In other situations, the company may not have declared bankruptcy but may have established a trust as part of a personal injury verdict or settlement agreement. New Jersey has several asbestos trusts that are based on companies headquartered in the state or that have trustees who are in New Jersey.
A.B.B. Lummus Global, Inc. and ABB Ltd. Produced gaskets, insulation and valves that contained asbestos. The ABB Lummus Global Inc. 524(g) Asbestos Personal Injury Trust was established as part of the company’s reorganization plan after the company filed bankruptcy in 2006. It was funded with $38 million. The trust is administered in New Jersey. The company was sold in 2007 and is still funded.
A-Best Products is an Ohio Company that produced safety clothing that contained asbestos. It filed bankruptcy in 2002 and established the A-Best Asbestos Settlement Trust in 2004. The trust is administered in New Jersey and has estimated funds of $18 million.
ACandS Inc. is a Pennsylvania insulation company that used asbestos in its products, leading ultimately to the company filing bankruptcy in 2002. The trust was initially established with $400 million. It has paid out several million to claimants since the trust was formed in 2008. It has estimated funds of $528 million. The trust is administered out of Princeton, New Jersey.
The Brauer 524(g) Asbestos Trust was created as part of a Chapter 11 Fourth Amended Plan of Reorganization. Brauer Supply Company filed bankruptcy in 2005. This trust was established in 2012 and has estimated funds of $8 million. It is administered out of Princeton, New Jersey.
Burns & Roe is a construction and engineering products. Unlike many of the other companies with asbestos trusts, it did not manufacture products with asbestos. However, it sent workers to jobsites where these materials were used. Contractors and construction workers who worked for the company could have been exposed to asbestos. A subsidiary of the company, Burns & Roe Enterprises, Inc. filed bankruptcy in 2000. It has estimated funds of $172 million. The trust was established in 2009 and is administered out of Princeton.
Christy Refractories is a company based in St. Louis, Missouri. It is a manufacturer of ceramics and refractories that contained asbestos in them. The Christy Refractories Asbestos Personal Injury Trust has estimated funds of $23 million. It was established in 2010 after the company filed bankruptcy in 2010. It is administered out of New Jersey.
The G-I Asbestos Settlement Trust has estimated funds of $770 million. G-I Holdings and GAF Corporation acquired various companies that previously manufactured asbestos in them. Eventually, the company filed bankruptcy in 2001. The trust was established in 2009 to cover claims related to roofing materials, siding, paints, tiles and other products that contain asbestos. The company is headquartered in Wayne, New Jersey and the trust is administered out of Princeton.
Hercules Chemical filed bankruptcy in 2008 after liability stemming from their furnace putties and cements that contained asbestos. The company reorganized in 20101to handle remaining claims. It has estimated funds of $8.6 million. The company is headquartered in Passaic, New Jersey while the trust is administered in Newtown, Pennsylvania.
Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical Corporation is a large company that was responsible for producing insulation and cement products that contained asbestos. The company’s trust was established in 2006 and had estimated funds of $1.2 billion. It has handled millions of claims since it was established. The trust is administered in New Jersey while the headquarters is located in Foothill Ranch, California.
The Pilbrico Asbestos Trust was established in 2006 after Pilbrico Co. faced a large lawsuit naming it and 49 other companies due to asbestos liability. The company filed bankruptcy in 2002, and the trust emerged in 20006. It had estimated funds of $205.6 million. The trust is administered out of Princeton while the company is headquartered in Chicago.
Porter-Hayden Co. manufactured insulation products that contained asbestos in them. After being named as a defendant in approximately 58,000 asbestos claims, the company filed bankruptcy in 2002. The Porter-Hayden Bodily Injury Trust was established in 2006 and is administered in New Jersey. It has estimated funds of $40 million. The company, once headquartered in Baltimore, is no longer in operation.
Quigley Co. also faced daunting asbestos claims. It initially filed bankruptcy in 2004 and then had difficulty reorganizing because of ongoing disputes. The Quigley Co. Inc. Asbestos Personal Injury Trust was eventually established in 2013 and has estimated funds of $569 million. The trust is administered out of New Jersey.
T.H. Agriculture & Nutrition distributed products that contained asbestos. The New York based company declared bankruptcy in 2008. The T.H. Agriculture & Nutrition, L.L.C. Asbestos Personal Injury Trust was established a year later and has estimated funds of $901 million to handle approximately 6,000 claims. The trust is administered out of New Jersey.
The United States Mineral Products Company Asbestos Personal Injury Settlement Trust was established after the former company manufactured fire-resistant products that contained asbestos. The company headquartered in Stanhope, New Jersey declared bankruptcy in 2001 after facing over 200,000 claims. The trust was established in 2005 and has estimated funds of $8 million. The trust was established to handle the claims that existed at the time.
Yarway manufactured product parts that contained asbestos, such as gaskets, valves, taps and packing materials. After facing several lawsuits, it declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2013. It established a trust in 2013 that has estimated funds of $3.25 million. The trust is administered out of Princeton.
The Muralo Trust was established in 2007 by Mural Co., which is headquartered in Bayonne, New Jersey and had acquired another company that manufactured asbestos-containing materials. The trust had estimated funds of $2.5 million, but it is considered inactive.
New Jersey Mesothelioma Lawsuits
New Jersey is home to several noteworthy mesothelioma and asbestos cases. Sizable verdicts published in the news media from unaffiliated law firms range from nearly 10 million to nearly 100 million. These verdicts are in addition to many other unknown sizable settlements. Often, these settled cases involve sums that cannot be revealed in the public. For example, a man sought compensation in a 2006 case for his wife’s death after she died from mesothelioma. She had laundered his asbestos-contaminated work clothes. The lawsuit named many defendants, but the case was ultimately settled for an undisclosed amount.
New Jersey Mesothelioma Law Firms
Many law firms in New Jersey focus on mesothelioma, asbestos and toxic tort cases. Some local firms in New Jersey that may serve as co-counsel include firms located in Hasbrouck, New Jersey, Teaneck, Freehold, and Lawrenceville which have helped clients recover substantial jury verdicts for asbestos victims. Our lawyers can analyze your claim and determine if you may have a viable case to seek compensation against negligent parties; so it is important to contact our mesothelioma lawyers today.
