Standards Now Higher For Texas Asbestos Cases

By Ramsay Crooks

Published on July 22, 2005

Texas lawmakers have established new rules for asbestos-related lawsuits in an effort to reduce frivolous lawsuits and eliminate harsh deadlines for legitimate cases. The older deadline-based legislation forced people who had been exposed to asbestos to file claims, even if they had not necessarily shown any symptoms of disease.

With roughly 50,000 pending asbestos cases in Texas courts, lawmakers decided to raise the medical standards required to file an asbestos lawsuit in the state. The move is expected to drastically reduce the number of baseless claims filed, as well as provide some flexibility for those who have legitimate cases, but do not develop problems until decades after the asbestos exposure.

Critics of the new rules say that the new medical standards are too high, and that valid claims will be denied for lack of evidence or severity. However, both trial lawyers and industry officials have supported the bill, calling it a fair compromise.

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