Mesothelioma Lawyers and Defendants

With dedicated attorneys and staff, lawyers have worked hard to ensure that clients receive high quality representation. The following are profiles of some well known mesothelioma lawyers that were instrumental in shaping mesothelioma litigation.


Fred Baron
Fred Baron, represented his first toxic tort client in the early 1970s. Then, he has built one of the largest toxic tort firms in the United States. Widely recognized as a trailblazer in the area of toxic tort law, one reporter noted,"[i]f the field of toxic torts were the frontier of the American West, Baron would have been driving the first wagon onto the plains." G. Taylor, "Outspoken Texan, Baron Establishes Toxic Tort Domain," Legal Times, Vol. VI, No. 25, at p. 10 (Nov. 21, 1983).

As a result of his work to protect the rights of victims of toxic substances, The National Law Journal has listed Fred as one of the "100 Most Influential Lawyers in the U.S." (The National Law Journal, June 8, 2000). He has been honored as a lawyer who helped shape Texas law during the 20th century in "Legal Legends: A Century of Texas Law and Lawyering" (Texas Lawyer commemorative publication, June 2000) and has been named one of Dallas' top lawyers by D Magazine (May 2001 and May 2005). The University of Texas School of Law has honored him by establishing the Frederick M. Baron Chair in Law, which is held by a senior professor of the law school engaged in original research on lawyering and the civil justice system.

A life-long advocate of the environment, the consumer, and working people, Fred Baron has served as lead attorney in complex tort cases involving MTBE and TCE water contamination, radiation contamination, community lead contamination, toxic waste, and pesticide exposure.

Fred Baron has also been credited for his efforts in defeating class action settlements whereby defendant corporations attempted to settle mass tort claims for a fraction of what individuals would otherwise be entitled to recover through the legal system. Fred has twice led successful battles to convince the United States Supreme Court to de-certify nationwide class action settlements involving the "future claims" of asbestos-related injuries, or claims that might someday be brought by people who develop asbestos-related illnesses in the future. As a result of the United States Supreme Court's opinions in Amchem Products v. Windsor, 521 U.S. 591 (1997) and Ortiz v. Fibreboard Corp., 527 U.S. 815, 119 S.Ct. 2295, 144 L.Ed.2d 715 (1999), future victims of toxic injuries can no longer have their rights compromised by class action settlements in which they have no voice.

Lisa Blue, Ph.D.

Lisa Blue, a trial attorney and psychologist, has represented hundreds of victims of asbestos and other toxic substances since 1985. Her accomplishments in trial courts around the country earned her the honor of being named one of the top 50 women litigators in the U.S. by The National Law Journal (2002), and the honor of Trial Lawyer of the Year (1999) by the Texas Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), and recognition as one of Dallas' best lawyers by D Magazine (May 2001, May 2003, and May 2005.) Dallas Business Journal likewise named her one of hte top ten litigators in Dallas. She has also been named by Law & Politics Media as one of the top 100 lawyers in Texas, top 50 women lawyers, and top 100 lawyers in Dallas.

A licensed psychologist, Lisa is certified by the American Board of Forensic Psychology and the American Board of Professional Psychology. Well-known for her work in the area of jury selection, Ms. Blue has published a book and a number of articles on the issue as well as provided over 200 lectures on the topics of jury selection, trial psychology, and witness preparation through organizations such as the State Bar of Texas, Association of Trial Lawyers of America, the Trial Lawyers Associations of various states, and Harvard University.

Lisa Blue is a past president of the Dallas and Texas chapters of the American Board of Trial Advocates and has served on the Board of Directors of Trial Lawyers for Public Justice and Public Citizen. She is currently a member of the Board of Directors for the Dallas Bar Association. She has also served on the Executive Committee and as head of the Amicus Committee for the Texas Trial Lawyers Association; the Judiciary Task Force for the American Bar Association; the Texas Supreme Court Task Force on Judicial Reform; and as the Chair of the Dallas Bar Association CLE Committee. Lisa is a member of numerous other professional organizations, including American Association of Sex Educators, Counselors and Therapists; American Psychological Association; Dallas Psychological Association; American Bar Association; Texas Psychological Association; and the American Thoracic Association. In addition, Lisa is very involved in supporting the work of Exodus Ministries, a non-profit organization which provides transitional housing and support services to ex-convicts and their families.

Prior to private practice in 1985, Lisa was an Assistant District Attorney in Dallas and prosecuted over 125 criminal cases to verdict. Lisa also maintains a small practice as a counseling and forensic psychologist and assists in selecting juries and preparing witnesses as part of her psychology practice. In her spare time, Lisa enjoys the study of French and Spanish.

Ronald L. Motley

Ronald L. Motley is a lawyer and founding member of Motley Rice, LLC, a Mount Pleasant, South Carolina law firm focusing on plaintiff's litigation involving asbestos, mesothelioma law, plane crashes, securities and consumer fraud.

Ronald Motley graduated from the University of South Carolina School of Law, has over his three-decade career recovered significant compensation for his asbestos and mesothelioma clients. Mr. Motley was also involved in the tobacco litigation and was portrayed in the Insider by Bruce McGill in director Michael Mann's 1999 film which starred Russell Crowe.

Mr. Motley now represents over 6,500 survivors and their family members who where survivors of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Mr. Motley is pursuing claims against the financier of the 9/11 terrorists.

Mr. Motley has received the Harry M. Philo Trial Lawyer of the Year by the 50,000-member of the American Association for Justice and received the President’s Award of the National Association of Attorneys General. In 1999, he received the Youth Advocates of the Year awared for the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

In addition to trying some of the first asbestos and mesothelioma cases, Mr. Motley has published extensively on asbestos litigation. These include:

How to Handle an Asbestos Case," Chapter 21, A Guide to Toxic Torts, Matthew Bender Publication;

"Medicolegal Aspects of Asbestos-Related Diseases: A Plaintiff's Attorney's Perspective," Chapter 12, Pathology of Asbestos-Associated Diseases, Roggli, et al., eds., Little, Brown and Co., 1992

"Decades of Deception: Secrets of Lead, Asbestos and Tobacco," TRIAL Magazine, October 1999.

He has been dubbed the man who took on Manville. The National Law Journal has ranked Mr. Motley as one of the most influential lawyers in America.

Richard Scruggs

Richard "Dick" Scruggs is a well known lawyer in Mississippi. He has represented individuals diagnosed with asbestos related cancers and mesothelioma since 1980. Due to the Firm's success in representing those with asbestos related injuries, the Attorneys General of the State of Mississippi and Louisiana retained the Firm in connection with cost recovery litigation against the asbestos industry.

Scruggs attended law school at the University of Mississippi with Mike Moore. He practiced law in Jackson, Mississippi and New York before opening his own private practice in Pascagoula, Mississippi..

Scruggs' brother-in-law is Senator Trent Lott, former Majority Leader of the US Senate. Scruggs is currently representing Lott through the Scruggs Katrina Group in a lawsuit against insurance company State Farm because of damage stemming from Hurricane Katrina

Scruggs was also involved in the tobacco industry litigation. The law firm filed the first suit resulted in the first settlement of its kind with the tobacco industry. The Firm's successes and position made it instrumental in negotiating the $248 billion Master Settlement Agreement in 1998.

• A.P. Greene
• A.W. Chesterton
• Anchor Packing
• Armstrong Cork
• Asbestos Claims Management
• Babcock & Wilcox
• Bendix Corporation
• Blackman Supply
• Borg Warner
• Brown & Root
• Byron Church
• Certainteed Corporation
• C.J. McBride
• Cleaver Brooks
• Combustion Engineering
• Con Edison
• Crown Cork & Seal
• Davis & Warshow
• Duro Dyne
• F.M. Charlton
• Fibreboard Corporation
• Flexitallic Gasket
• Flintkote
• Foster Wheeler Energy
• Fuller Austin Insulation
• GAF Corporation
• Garlock
• Gasket Holding
• General Electric
• General Refractories
• George A. Fuller
• Georgia Pacific
• Glen Alden
• Grant Wilson
• H.B. Fuller
• H.K. Porter
• Harbison-Walker Refractories
• Henry Quentzel
• Indresco
• John Sore
• Joseph A. Hendel
• JT Thorpe
• Kasier Aluminum
• Kelly-Moore Paint
• Lykes Bros. Steamship
• Manville Corp.
• Metropolitan Life Insurance
• Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing
• National Gypsum Company
• North American Refractories
• Owens Corning
• Parker Abex
• Pittsburgh Corning
• Plibrico Company
• Plymouth Products
• PPG Industries
• Pneumo Abex
• Proko Industries
• Rapid American
• Riley Stoker
• Robert A. Keasbey
• Ruberoid Corporation
• Sherwood Davis & Geck
• Smith-Sharpe
• Swan Transpiration
• Synkoloid
• Turner Newall
• U.S. Gypsum
• Unarco Industries
• Uniroyal Holding
• W.R. Grace
• W.S. Tyler
• Weil McLain
• Win Way
• Zurn Industries


* Arizona
* Chandler
* Gilbert
* Glendale
* Mesa
* Peoria
* Phoenix
* Scottsdale
* Tempe
* California
* Anaheim
* Antioch
* Arden-Arcade
* Berkeley
* Burbank
* Chula Vista
* Concord
* Corona
* Costa Mesa
* Daly City
* Downey
* East Los Angeles
* El Monte
* Escondido
* Fairfield
* Fontana
* Fremont
* Fullerton
* Garden Grove
* Glendale
* Hayward
* Huntington Beach
* Inglewood
* Irvine
* Lancaster
* Long Beach
* Los Angeles
* Moreno Valley
* Norwalk
* Oakland
* Oceanside
* Ontario
* Orange
* Oxnard
* Palmdale
* Pasadena
* Pomona
* Rancho Cucamonga
* Richmond
* Riverside
* Sacramento
* San Bernardino
* San Buenaventura (Ventura)
* San Diego
* San Francisco
* San Jose
* Santa Ana
* Santa Clara
* Santa Clarita
* Santa Rosa
* Simi Valley
* South Gate
* Sunnyvale
* Thousand Oaks
* Torrance
* Vallejo
* West Covina
* Colorado
* Arvada
* Aurora
* Denver
* Fort Collins
* Lakewood
* Westminster

* Connecticut
* Bridgeport
* Hartford
* New Haven
* Stamford
* Waterbury
District of
Columbia
* Washington DC
* Florida
* Clearwater
* Coral Springs
* Fort Lauderdale
* Hialeah
* Hollywood
* Jacksonville
* Miami
* Miramar
* Orlando
* Pembroke Pines
* Port St. Lucie
* St. Petersburg
* Tallahassee
* Tampa
* Georgia
* Athens-Clarke
County
* Atlanta
* Illinois
* Aurora
* Chicago
* Joliet
* Naperville
* Indiana
* Indianapolis
* Kansas
* Kansas City
* Olathe
* Overland Park
* Kentucky
* Louisville
* Louisiana
* Baton Rouge
* Metairie
* New Orleans
* Maryland
* Baltimore
* Massachusetts
* Boston
* Cambridge
* Lowell
* Michigan
* Ann Arbor
* Detroit
* Livonia
* Sterling Heights
* Warren
* Minnesota
* Minneapolis
* St. Paul
* Missouri
* Independence
* Kansas City
* St. Louis
* North Carolina
* Charlotte
* Durham
* Raleigh
* Nevada
Henderson
* Las Vegas
* North Las Vegas
* Paradise
* Spring Valley
* Sunrise Manor

* New Jersey
* Edison
* Elizabeth
* Jersey City
* Newark
* Paterson
* New York
* New York
* Rochester
* Syracuse
* Yonkers
* Ohio
* Akron
* Cincinnati
* Cleveland
* Columbus
* Dayton
* Oregon
* Portland
* Salem
* Pennsylvania
* Philadelphia
* Pittsburgh
* Rhode Island
* Providence
* Tennessee
* Knoxville
* Memphis
* Texas
* Arlington
* Austin
* Beaumont
* Carrollton
* Dallas
* Fort Worth
* Garland
* Grand Prairie
* Houston
* Irving
* Mesquite
* Pasadena
* Plano
* Richardson
* San Antonio
* Utah
* Provo
* Salt Lake City
* West Valley
* Virginia
* Alexandria
* Arlington
* Hampton
* Newport News
* Norfolk
* Richmond
* Virginia Beach
* Washington
* Bellevue
* Seattle
* Tacoma
* Vancouver
* Wisconsin
* Madison
* Milwaukee

Comprehensive management of diffuse malignant peritoneal mesothelioma.

AIMS: In the past, diffuse malignant peritoneal mesothelioma (DMPM) has been regarded as a terminal condition. The length of the survival was dependent upon the aggressive versus indolent biology of the neoplasm, nevertheless cure was not considered as a reasonable expectation and the overall median survival was approximately one year. METHODS: A comprehensive literature review and a collection of pertinent data published on DMPM from the Washington Cancer Institute were used to construct this report. RESULTS: Recent publications from Bethesda MD, New York, Milan Italy, Lyon France and Washington DC have shown a remarkable prolongation in the median survival of this group of patients with approximately half the patients alive at 5 years. These prolonged survivors were treated with an intensive local-regional treatment strategy that included cytoreductive surgery (CRS) with peritonectomy and hyperthermic intraoperative intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIIC) and some patients with early postoperative intraperitoneal chemotherapy (EPIC). As larger numbers of patients have been treated, clinical features by which to select patients most likely to benefit from this approach have been identified. Also, as the experience in the management of patients receiving these treatments has increased, the morbidity and mortality associated with their management is being reduced. CONCLUSIONS: A new standard of care involves surgical removal of large disease deposits combined with perioperative intraperitoneal chemotherapy. Knowledgeable management uses selection criteria and incurs low morbidity and mortality.

Mesothelioma - First Therapy

Summary: Patients with pleural mesothelioma live longer and have less pain and shortness of breath when treated with a combination of cisplatin and pemetrexed. This drug combination caused the cancer to shrink in 41 percent of patients. This is the first therapy to show a benefit for this type of cancer.

Text: Patients with cancer of the lining of the lung, known as pleural mesothelioma, live longer and have less pain and shortness of breath when treated with a combination of cisplatin plus a newer drug called pemetrexed than if they received cisplatin alone according to a Phase III study published in the July 15, 2003, issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

This study -- presented in part at a plenary session at last year's meeting of the American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO) -- is the first to show a benefit for this type of cancer.

"For the first time we have a therapy for mesothelioma that makes a difference," said study director Nicholas J. Vogelzang, M.D., Fred C. Buffett Professor of medicine and director of the University of Chicago Cancer Research Center. "This is a real step forward. It should encourage patients to keep trying and inspire physicians to focus more attention on this frustrating disease."

"This trial establishes pemetrexed and cisplatin as a new standard in systemic therapy for mesothelioma," noted Valerie Rusch, M.D., of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, in an editorial in the Journal. "It is now reasonable to state that effective chemotherapy exists for MPM (malignant pleural mesothelioma), dispelling the profound sense of nihilism surrounding treatment of this disease."

Mesothelioma patients who were treated with pemetrexed (trade named Alimta(R) plus the commonly used chemotherapy drug cisplatin lived for about a year after diagnosis, nearly three months longer than did patients who received only cisplatin. In addition, one-year survival after diagnosis increased from 41.9 percent for patients receiving cisplatin to 56.5 percent for those receiving cisplatin plus pemetrexed.

The two-drug combination caused the cancer to shrink in 41 percent of patients, compared to 17 percent of patients who received only cisplatin, and was more effective at reducing pain and shortness of breath, symptoms commonly experienced by patients with pleural mesothelioma.

Pleural mesothelioma is a rare and lethal form of cancer that occurs in the mesothelium, a thin layer of specialized cells that lines the lungs. Most cases are caused by asbestos exposure. In the United States there are about 2,500 new cases a year. Because the disease is often advanced at the time of diagnosis, average survival for those with pleural mesothelioma has been significantly less than one year.

Pemetrexed is a cousin of one of the earliest chemotherapy drugs, methotrexate, used for the treatment of other types of cancer. While methotrexate blocks one enzyme necessary for cell division and tumor growth, pemetrexed blocks three such enzymes.

This Phase III randomized study was the largest mesothelioma trial ever conducted, involving 456 patients. Patients were selected at random to receive pemetrexed plus cisplatin or cisplatin alone.

In the course of the study, the researchers found that many of the patients were deficient in the vitamins folic acid and B12. The deficiencies, presumably caused by the cancer and a poor appetite, decreased the ability of normal cells to repair and produce new DNA. The vitamin-deficient patients who received pemetrexed were more likely to experience severe toxicity (such as very low white blood cell counts, severe diarrhea, and severe mouth ulcers) than patients who received only cisplatin.

Following this observation, all patients in the study received folic acid and vitamin B12 as a standard part of their treatment. This reduced the toxic side effects associated with pemetrexed, allowing more patients to benefit from the drug.

"Although the pemetrexed plus cisplatin chemotherapy regimen is a clear advance in the treatment of MPM," wrote Rusch, "it hardly represents a home run in this difficult disease." Future studies, she suggested, should focus on applying this regimen to patients with earlier stages of the disease and the addition of other anti-cancer agents or targeted therapies for patients with advanced disease.

Two such follow-up trials are already underway at the University of Chicago Hospitals. One is testing cisplatin plus pemetrexed, followed by surgery and radiation therapy, for patients whose disease has been diagnosed earlier and can potentially be cured by surgery and radiation alone. The addition of chemotherapy is designed to improve the cure rate, which currently hovers around 15 percent with surgery and radiation. A second study combines pemetrexed with the chemotherapy agent gemcitabine, which replaces cisplatin.

This combination of pemetrexed and gemcitabine "is keeping me alive," reports Richard Shanas, a 55-year-old retired police officer from Chicago, diagnosed with mesothelioma in November of 2000. Shanas has an abdominal tumor, rather than lung disease. He entered a clinical trial of an investigational angiogenesis inhibitor but had to drop out when his tumor continued to grow. Since beginning treatment with pemetrexed and gemcitabine his tumor has shrunk by about one third.

The side effects of therapy are "moderate but unpredictable," said Shanas. He had a rash at the beginning but that went away. Now he tires easily, which has forced him to cut back on his work, and requires occasional blood transfusions, but reports that "on the whole, my quality of life is not bad."

The study was supported by a grant from Eli Lilly and Company, makers of Alimta.

The research team came from the University of Chicago Cancer Research Center; Eli Lilly and Company, Indianapolis, IN; US Oncology, Dallas, TX; Allgemeines Krankenhaus Harburg, Hamburg, Germany; Institut Gustave Roussy, Villejuif, France; Krankenhaus Grosshansdorf, Grosshansdorf, Germany; Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, Australia; Hacettepe University Medical Faculty, Ankara, Turkey; and Thoraxklinik-Rohrbach, Heidelberg, Germany.

University of Chicago
John Easton
July 15, 2003

Mesothelioma Prevention

In terms of asbestos, mesothelioma prevention is extremely important to reduce the risks of this serious cancer . Mesothelioma is a fatal cancer that affects the lining of the heart, lung, or abdominal cavity. Mesothelioma has been almost exclusively linked to asbestos exposure, a group of hazardous fibers that were manufactured in hundreds of industries around the world. There are many ways that people to protect themselves against workplace or non-occupational exposure to asbestos in an effort to prevent mesothelioma.

The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration has enacted a number of workplace asbestos regulations to aid in mesothelioma prevention. Under workplace asbestos laws , the permissible level of exposure is 01. fibers per cubic centimeter for an eight-hour work day and one fiber per cubic centimeter in any thirty minute time frame.

Furthermore, workplace regulations to prevent asbestos exposure require employers to frequently monitor and regulate the work environment in addition to providing their employees with protective clothing and respiratory equipment, sufficient hygiene facilities, routine medical exams, and training .

The Environmental Protection Agency recommends a number of steps and precautions people can take to help protect themselves against non-occupational asbestos exposure that may lead to mesothelioma. These mesothelioma prevention methods include, but are not limited to:

Regular inspection and monitoring of asbestos-containing products or materials around the home since asbestos was commonly used in the production of roof shingles, insulation, flooring, and more.

Don't attempt to remove any asbestos-containing materials. It is vital that you enlist the help of an asbestos removal professional who is properly trained to handle the material and can ensure safe removal.

Avoid vacuuming, sweeping, drilling, sanding, or scraping any surfaces that may contain asbestos fibers. Once these fibers are airborne, they may be inhaled or ingested greatly increasing the risk of mesothelioma.

Quit smoking, especially if you work in an industry in which you are frequently exposed to high levels of asbestos. Studies have indicated that asbestos workers who smoke cigarettes have a 50 to 100 times greater risk of dying from mesothelioma or lung cancer.

If you or a loved one is suffering from mesothelioma side effects, it is vital that you seek immediate medical attention at the first sign of symptoms such as chest pains, shortness of breath, coughs, severe weight loss, and more . Early diagnosis and treatment of mesothelioma is the best form of prevention and can produce the most favorable outcome of the disease.

Stages of mesothelioma

Once you receive a diagnosis of malignant mesothelioma, more tests will be done to determine whether cancer cells have spread to other parts of the body. This is called "staging". Your doctor will need to know the stage of the cancer in order to plan treatment.

Staging is the process by which doctors judge how dangerous a cancer is in a patient. When staging a cancer, doctors investigate where the cancer is located, the size of the cancerous tumor, whether the cancer has spread to other body parts, and if the cancer is affecting other bodily functions. By running a series of diagnostic tests, including tomography, doctors ascertain the information they need to plan an effective treatment and judge the patient’s prognosis.

It is important that doctors have a common system for staging cancer so they can easily exchange information about patients. Although there are many different kinds of cancer, the TNM system, developed by the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) is the system used for most varieties of cancer. (Cancers of the spinal cord or brain, as well as lymphoma, do not warrant use of the TNM system). When using the TNM system, doctors assign a numeric value to a “T”, “N”, and “M” category.

The “T” category is used to classify the original tumor. Doctors assign a numerical value between 0 and 4 to the tumor, with 4 indicating a large tumor that has grown deep into adjacent structures. The “T” value of the tumor can also be an “Tx” meaning the tumor can’t be measured, or a “Tis,” which indicates the tumor is in situ (the tumor has not grown into nearby tissues).

The “N” category measures if, and to what extent, the cancer has spread to neighboring lymph nodes. Like the “T” category, the “N” category is assigned a value of 0-4, with the higher “N” values indicating a larger area of affected lymph nodes. A “Nx” value means the nearby lymph nodes cannot be evaluated.

The “M” category is used to tell whether the cancer has generated any distant metastases. Distant metastases are areas far from the site of the tumor that show signs of cancerous cells. Usually, the presence of distant metastasis indicates the cancer has entered the bloodstream. The “M” category only has three possible values: “Mx” (metastasis can’t be evaluated), “0” (no distant metastases) and “1” (metastasis has occurred).

When all three TNM values have been found, doctors then assign the cancer a stage value of 0-IV. (Some stages are subdivided into categories like IIIa or IIIb as well.) Once the stage is determined, a doctor can give a prognosis and decide on the most effective treatment.

The standard for staging mesothelioma is as follows:
Localized malignant mesothelioma

Stage I: The cancer is located in the lining of the chest cavity near the lung and heart, or in the diaphragm or the lung.
Advanced malignant mesothelioma

Stage II: The cancer has spread beyond the lining of the chest to lymph nodes in the chest.

Stage III: The cancer has spread into the chest wall, center of the chest, heart, through the diaphragm, or abdominal lining, and in some cases, into nearby lymph nodes.

Stage IV: The cancer has spread to distant organs or tissues.
Recurrent malignant mesothelioma

Recurrent disease means that the cancer has come back after it has been treated. It may come back in the lining of the chest or abdomen or in another part of the body.