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Couple Sues 25 Companies over Asbestos-related Lung Cancer

Chicago, Illinois – An Illinois couple is suing 25 defendant companies over claims that they negligently exposed the husband to dangerous asbestos exposure during his career.

Mitchell Sivertson, along with Irene Sivertson, has filed a suit on 31st August in the circuit court of Cook County. The 25 companies named as defendants in this lawsuit are: Gould Pumps Incorporated; Nagel Pumps Incorporated; FMC Corporation; Zurn Industries; Foster Wheeler Energy Corporation; CBS Corporation; Spirax Sarco Incorporated; Flowserve United States Incorporated; General Electric Co; ITT Industries Incorporated; Ingersoll Rand Company; Gardner Denver Incorporated; John Crane Incorporated; AW Chesterton Company; Union Oil Co of California; BP Amoco Corporation; Exxon Mobil Corporation; BP Amoco Chemical Company; BP Products N. America; BP America; Amoco Chemical Company; Amoco Corporation; BP Chemicals Incorporated; BP Corp N. America; United States Steel Corporation; and Owens Illinois Incorporated.

According to the lawsuit, Mitchell Sivertson suffered long-term asbestos exposure while working at various locations for the defendants from 1954 and 2000. Mitchell had to deal with and work around numerous asbestos-containing products during this period, the lawsuit claims. Mr. Sivertson was working as a pipefitter, the complaint states.

Mitchell Sivertson says he has been a smoker for twenty three years. It was in year 2011 that his doctors diagnosed Mitchell with lung cancer, the complaint says. However, it was only in 2013 that his physicians linked his lung cancer to exposure to asbestos fibers, according to the suit.

According to the plaintiffs, the defendants were negligent in exposing Mitchell Sivertson to hazardous asbestos and causing him to develop lung cancer.

Mitchell Sivertson and Irene Sivertson are seeking in excess of $50,000 in damages, in addition to litigation costs and attorney fees.

Asbestos lung cancer is a group of ailments linked to asbestos exposure. It is chiefly an industrial disease. An estimate says nearly 5000 individuals died from this cancer each year in the United States. Many people believe smoking is the only cause of lung cancer. But that’s not the case. Long-term exposure to asbestos also can cause lung cancer. Smokers with a history of exposure to asbestos fibers are especially at risk.

Asbestos was an ingredient at numerous everyday products like roofing shingles, tiles, brake pads, gaskets, insulation material, and cement. It was extensively added to many industrial and construction products because of its wonderful physical properties, including high strength, substantial resistance to fire and heat, flexibility, durability and its low cost. Now asbestos is a regulated mineral in the U.S.