Mesothelioma Claims Process
Below is a guide that will tell you how the claims process will work. Please note that this is intended to show you how a typical case of asbestos-related disease would work, but we will not always follow these steps to the letter, depending on whether your case or circumstances require a different approach.1. Determine if you have a valid claim
As a first step, we will meet you to determine if we think the claim will be accepted. In a simple case, we may be able to advise you at an early stage of whether to pursue your claim through legal action. In a complex case, additional work may be needed before we can do it.In addition to determining if you have a claim for an asbestos-related illness, we will consider the probable amount of compensation that a court would award. In many cases, we will not seriously consider the amount of compensation until the preliminary medical issues have been examined, but we can always give a general overview of the main categories of compensation at the beginning of the case. The investigation of the value of your file may take some time and may involve the proof of accountancy in complex cases.
2. Determine how legal fees will be paid
The next step is to check if you have legal protection insurance through your household, car or credit card insurance. If you do, we will contact your insurers to ask them to finance the claim. Otherwise, if we consider that your case has a good chance of success, we will act for you at no cost, which means that we will not charge you in case of loss of the case. We will also take out an insurance policy covering the expenses on the other side, which you will also have to pay in case of loss of the file.If the case succeeds, we recover all of our fees from the losing defendants, in addition to your compensation. However, all the different options on claim financing will be explained in more detail at our first meeting.
3. Determine the type of claim to be pursued
Unfortunately, exposure to asbestos dust can cause not only current illnesses, but also a risk of serious asbestos-related diseases in the future. These will be indicated in your medical report, if any. You are entitled to compensation for both your current situation and these future risks, and the law allows you to choose the method of claim.We will inform you of options and considerations, but it is your decision to choose the type of claim you wish to make.
4. Gather Evidence
Once we have established that you have a claim and agreed upon the method of payment, we will then focus on gathering evidence to prove the essential elements of a claim.5. Contact the accused
Once the facts are gathered and we are happy to proceed, we will contact the defendant and inform him that a complaint has been lodged against him. We will send them a letter explaining the reasons for which we have pleaded the case, detailing any evidence and the effect that exposure to asbestos has had on you. The accused then have three months, legally, to conduct investigations (earlier in the case of a claim for mesothelioma).6. Legal Action
Three months after contacting the responsible party, we are allowed to initiate proceedings to take legal action (earlier in a mesothelioma case). In a simple case, we aim to initiate a procedure as soon as possible after the three month period.7. Go to trial
Once the procedure is complete, you must follow the steps of the procedure in order to advance your file. The Judge of Judicial Procedure sets dates for the exchange of witness statements, documents and expert reports and, in many cases, sets a date for the hearing.You will probably be invited to attend at least one conference with your lawyer before the trial to discuss the different aspects of the case and how best to proceed.
The case can either be settled because the defendants have made an acceptable offer of compensation, or be judged. The length of the trial varies according to the complexity of the case. Some cases are divided, so one hearing deals with liability and another with the amount of damages.