The modern world is filled with potentially hazardous chemicals and medicines we come into contact with on an everyday basis. Unfortunately, it’s common for people to become dangerously poisoned from products or medicines we buy to keep us safe and healthy.
Here, we’ve put together a brief guide for recognizing toxic tort and pursuing compensation.
What is a Toxic Tort?
A toxic tort occurs whenever a person becomes injured or ill due to toxic substance exposure. In order to qualify as toxic tort, however, you or someone else must have been injured due to another’s negligence.
For example, if your medication causes you to contract a serious illness because the packaging was improperly labeled, the individual or company responsible for labeling will likely be held liable, and you may have a case for toxic tort.
Common Examples of Toxic Tort
Some of the most common examples of toxic tort include:
- Asbestos exposure
- Contact with lead paint
- Improperly produced or prescribed medicines
- Mold poisoning
- Chemical dumping
- Exposure to airborne gases or fumes
Do You Have a Case?
In order to pursue a case for toxic tort, you must be able to prove the following:
- Your injury or illness is the result of exposure to a toxic substance. Often in the case of toxic tort, illnesses can remain hidden for an extensive amount of time, making it difficult to diagnose as toxic exposure.
- Your exposure was caused by the negligence of another. This also requires extensive investigation in order to prove, but you must be able to show that another’s negligence caused your exposure to a toxic product, chemical or medication. Exactly who you will sue is another question since numerous parties often handle hazardous substances before consumers, and each can potentially be held liable.
- The science holds up. You must also be able to provide scientific studies or proof that reveals a certain substance to be capable of your illness or injury. These sorts of investigations will likely take extensive time and resources.
If you feel you have been exposed to a toxic substance and have suffered an illness or injury from exposure, contact the Tampa personal injury attorneys at Lorenzo & Lorenzo for a free consultation.
