According to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, asbestos attorneys are converging on the small town of Missoula, Montana, where a February 2009 trial date has been set for one of the most significant criminal indictments for an environmental crime in U.S. history. The trial relates to the government's case against The W.R. Grace Co. and six of its executives on charges that they knowingly endangered the lives of thousands of people with asbestos tainted ore from its Libby Montana asbestos mine.

Asbestos has been shown to cause various types of cancer. As such, asbestos attorneys have frequently been successful in winning substantial verdicts or settlements for clients suffering from asbestos related cancers. In many asbestos cases, attorneys have been able to convince juries that asbestos defendants were aware of the lethal dangers of asbestos but concealed the dangers to capitalize on the commercial uses of asbestos.

For decades, W.R. Grace asbestos company managers instructed factory workers in Libby to process asbestos ore into commercial products used for plumbing insulation, fireproofing and gardening. Hundreds of people have died in and around the town of Libby from asbestos related diseases. These diseases include mesothelioma, asbestosis, and lung cancer.

Asbestos attorneys accuse managers of conspiracy

The issue in the trial concerns what mine executives knew about the deadly hazards of asbestos and what safeguards they took to protect employees' health and working conditions. The government's asbestos attorneys are alleging that company managers, with an eye on the profit line, conspired to hide the truth from employees about the risks of working with asbestos.

Jury selection will start February 19, 2009 in Missoula. The trial will begin a week later and is expected to last four months. The government's asbestos attorneys have prepared a 49-page indictment listing 10 specific criminal counts of conspiracy, knowing endangerment, obstruction of justice and wire fraud.

This article was prepared by the asbestos attorneys of Weitz & Luxenberg. Weitz & Luxenberg asbestos attorneys provide free information concerning asbestos diseases like mesothelioma on its website.

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Jason Wentworth is an experienced paralegal and web designer. He has worked for plaintiffs’ law firms for the past five years either as a paralegal or a web designer. His responsibilities include blue booking briefs, filing briefs, maintaining case expense reports, website search engine optimization, researching and loading website content. Jason holds a Bachelor’s degree in Finance. During his free time, he enjoys playing guitar and listening to music.