Toxic tort is a personal injury case, wherein the person claims serious physical injury or illness due to exposure to harmful chemicals within the premises of the property owner. Common situations happen in pharmaceutical companies, mines and the environment, and at home. Occupational exposures can still be considered part of personal injury, under the toxic tort category.
The underlying premise of the case is for the plaintiff or the claimant to prove before the court that exposure is the cause of the imminent health disorder or problem. In a toxic tort claim, there are several issues that must be settled including who will be paying or what type of damages are to be claimed. With the aid of a personal injury lawyer, you can discuss the possible route taken for the progress of the case.
In most cases, a personal injury lawyer represents claiming the physical illness or such kind affecting them due to chemical exposure. It can also be that a class action be taken by a community against a mining company due to the contamination of underground water causing digestive disorders or any other physical disorders that can be linked to the water contamination. Either ways, toxic tort can be filed in the court for claim of damages.
There are four environments or contexts by which toxic torts may arise from, to wit: occupational exposure, pharmaceutical drugs, exposure in the home, and consumer products.
Occupational exposure focuses on exposure of industrial workers to excessive chemicals over an extended period of time, which is against the standard of the industry. Asbestos and benzine chemical exposure in the workplace are common cases of occupational exposure. For pharmaceutical drugs toxic tort, the background of adverse side-effects causing physical deformity, mental disorder or death is common. For toxic tort arising at home, class action is taken by the neighborhood after too much exposure to chemicals coming from a home. And lastly, consumer products include pesticides and other products that must not be used to humans.
The personal injury lawyer of a toxic tort lawsuit must prove three facets of the case. Mainly, it is necessary to establish the danger of chemical exposure of the substance. After driving the nail on the dangerous nature of the substance, it is necessary for the personal injury lawyer to provide evidence that the plaintiff has been exposed to the substance within a period of time. The last aspect of proving the toxic tort claim is to give documents showing the illness conceived due to the exposure.
In reality, toxic tort is a big challenge because of the holes that can be explored by the defendant to show doubt on the claim. The core of the toxic tort case is the causation principle. Where did the chemical substance come from? As mentioned above, it is necessary to prove who should be sued if the requirement of exposure is founded. The court administers the judgment of the case based on these aforementioned issues with the intent of providing fair damages compensation.
