Havre Toxic Exposure Lawyer | Asbestos & Mesothelioma

Havre, MontanaHavre Toxic Exposure

Havre Toxic Exposure Lawyers: Asbestos, Mesothelioma, Asbestosis and Chemical Exposure Claims on the Hi-Line

Boland Aarab PLLP.

If you or a family member in Havre has been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis or another illness linked to asbestos or a toxic chemical, you may have a claim against the companies that made, sold or failed to control it. Asbestos diseases often appear decades after exposure. Montana’s discovery rule can help, but the clock may start once you suspect the connection.

Diagnosed with an asbestos disease, or worried an exposure made you sick? Contact Boland Aarab PLLP for a free consultation at (406) 315-3737.

Why is asbestos a Hi-Line concern?

Montana’s asbestos history is public. A vermiculite mine near Libby was the source of more than 70 percent of all vermiculite sold in the United States from 1919 to 1990, and that vermiculite was contaminated with asbestos (EPA). EPA placed the Libby site on the Superfund National Priorities List in 2002, and in 2009 EPA and the Department of Health and Human Services declared a public health emergency there, the first in EPA’s history (EPA, Libby Asbestos Site). Libby vermiculite was shipped nationwide, including as attic insulation sold under the Zonolite name.

Older Hi-Line homes and buildings. Havre grew up with the railroad more than a century ago, and many of its homes, schools, churches, shops and farm buildings were built or remodeled when asbestos was common in insulation, pipe wrap, boiler lagging, floor tile, roofing and siding. EPA advises homeowners to assume vermiculite attic insulation came from Libby and to leave it undisturbed or have it handled by trained professionals (EPA). Remodeling, demolition and repair work can release fibers.

Railroad work. The federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry lists railroads among the industries where occupational asbestos exposure occurred (ATSDR). Havre has been a BNSF crew-change point and locomotive shop town for generations. A railroad worker’s asbestos claim against the railroad is generally brought under FELA, not workers’ compensation; see our Havre railroad and FELA page.

Mechanics and trades. ATSDR also lists automotive repair shops that work on brakes and clutches, along with insulators, pipefitters, plumbers, electricians, boilermakers, carpenters, roofers and demolition workers. On the Hi-Line, mechanics who spent years working on older trucks, tractors and heavy equipment, and tradespeople who worked in older buildings, may have been exposed.

Family members. Asbestos fibers carried home on work clothes can expose spouses and children who never set foot on the job site.

Why do asbestos diseases appear so late?

Asbestos diseases have long latency. ATSDR reports that the time between first occupational exposure and a mesothelioma diagnosis has commonly been 30 years or more, and that most cases of asbestosis and asbestos-related lung cancer in workers occur 15 or more years after first exposure (ATSDR, Toxicological Profile). The main diseases are:

Mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining of the lungs or abdomen strongly associated with asbestos;
Asbestosis, scarring of the lung tissue that makes breathing harder over time;
Lung cancer, whose risk asbestos exposure increases; and
Pleural disease, such as thickening or plaques in the lining around the lungs.

Because the exposure may be 30 or 40 years in the past, building the case means reconstructing a work history: employers, job sites, products, coworkers and the companies that made and supplied them.

What happens with an asbestos or toxic exposure claim from Havre?

Diagnosis and records. Mesothelioma and asbestosis are usually confirmed by specialists, often outside Havre. We gather pathology, imaging and treating records from every provider.

Exposure history. We interview the client and family, locate coworkers, and identify products and suppliers from purchasing records, union records, job-site histories and product identification testimony.

Bankruptcy trusts. Many former asbestos manufacturers went through bankruptcy and set up trusts to pay claims. A claim may involve trust submissions as well as a lawsuit against solvent companies.

The right court. A Hill County case can be filed in the Twelfth Judicial District Court at the Hill County Courthouse, 315 4th Street, Havre (§ 3-5-101, MCA). Montana also has an Asbestos Claims Court for claims arising from asbestos disease alleged to result from the mining, processing, transfer, storage, installation or removal of vermiculite (§§ 3-20-101, -102, MCA). Cases against out-of-state manufacturers are often heard in the federal Great Falls Division (D. Mont. L.R. 1.2(c)(3)).

Montana law that applies

Our Montana toxic exposure lawyer page covers these rules in depth:

A manufacturer can be strictly liable for a dangerous product even if it did not know the danger when it sold it; Montana bars “state of the art” evidence in strict-liability cases (Sternhagen v. Dow Co., 935 P.2d 1139 (Mont. 1997)).
Discovery rule. For an injury that is self-concealing by its nature, the limitation period does not begin until the facts are discovered or should have been (§ 27-2-102(3), MCA). Most injury claims then must be filed within 3 years (§ 27-2-204, MCA).
Latent-disease exception. Montana’s 10-year product repose rule does not bar a claim against a manufacturer for a latent respiratory disease or malignancy that can take longer than 10 years to appear (§ 27-1-719(6)(b), MCA).
Workers’ compensation is generally the exclusive remedy against a covered employer (§ 39-71-411, MCA), but not against the manufacturers and suppliers of asbestos products or other third parties (§ 39-71-412, MCA).
When an asbestos disease causes a death, the family may bring wrongful-death and survival claims (§ 27-1-513, MCA).

Why hire a Great Falls firm for a Havre case?

Exposure cases are built with science, work histories and patience, and many are litigated against national companies in federal court in Great Falls, where our office is. We handle cases statewide. We come to Havre to meet clients and families at home, which matters when a client is seriously ill, and we take testimony early when time is short. We have no office in Havre.

The Boland Aarab Way

We handle asbestos exposure cases. We handle asbestos exposure cases, including claims arising from decades-old exposure, and we assemble the testing and scientific evidence they require.
We know federal court. Our attorneys have handled more than 40 cases in the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana over nine years, and Samir Aarab has argued twice before the Ninth Circuit.
We try cases. The firm has tried more than a dozen jury trials, in Cascade, Phillips, Meagher and Yellowstone Counties, and our attorneys have spent more than 4,000 hours in the courtroom.
You work with the lawyers. Caitlin Boland Aarab and Samir Aarab handle your case themselves. Both belong to AAJ and MTLA.

Frequently Asked Questions

I was just diagnosed with mesothelioma, but my exposure was 40 years ago. Is it too late? Not necessarily. Montana’s discovery rule and the latent-disease exception to the product repose rule can preserve a claim. Talk with a lawyer promptly, because the 3-year period may run from diagnosis or from when you suspected the cause.

I worked for the railroad in Havre. Who would my claim be against? A claim against the railroad itself is generally brought under FELA. Claims against the manufacturers of asbestos products may also be available.

Our old Havre house has vermiculite in the attic. Should we remove it ourselves? No. EPA advises assuming it came from Libby and treating it as asbestos-containing: leave it undisturbed or use a trained professional.

My husband was a mechanic and I washed his work clothes. Could that have exposed me? It may have. Take-home exposure from work clothing is a recognized source of asbestos disease, and a family member may have a claim of their own.

What if the company that made the product went bankrupt? Many asbestos companies set up bankruptcy trusts to pay claims. A case may involve trust claims as well as a lawsuit against companies that remain solvent.

Contact Boland Aarab PLLP for a free consultation at (406) 315-3737.

Our attorneys: Caitlin Boland Aarab · Samir F. Aarab

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.