Mark Kirk: “Asbestos litigation has become a nightmare because the courts have been inundated by the claims of people who may have…”

“Asbestos litigation has become a nightmare because the courts have been inundated by the claims of people who may have been exposed to asbestos but who are not sick, who have no lung function deficit. This flood is conjured up through systematic, for-profit screening programs designed to find potential plaintiffs with some x-ray evidence 'consistent with' asbestosis. Ironically, and tragically, in many States that x-ray evidence triggers the statute of limitations, literally forcing the filing of premature claims. These claims are choking the asbestos litigation system and keeping the courts from doing their real job, providing compensation for people who are genuinely injured by asbestos diseases. The current state of asbestos litigation is a public health tragedy in which the claims of truly ill, terminally ill cancer patients and others who struggle to breathe are mixed together with those plaintiffs who suffer no impairments. In 2001, almost 90,000 individuals joined in asbestos-related personal injury suits against 6,000 entities, but only 10 percent of those claimants have any symptoms of asbestos-related illnesses. These legal tactics force defendants into settlements because they cannot take the risk of 'betting the company' on pronouncements of a judge and jury.”