Asbestos suit filed by Illinois woman names 67 defendants

An Illinois woman has filed an asbestos suit on behalf of her recently deceased husband against 67 defendant corporations, claiming the mesothelioma with which her husband was diagnosed was wrongfully caused.

Mary Lee Jahn-Lamb claims Richard W. Lamb was diagnosed with the disease Feb. 22 and died from it May 28, according to a lawsuit filed Sept. 8 in Madison County Circuit Court.

Jahn-Lamb says her husband worked from 1953 until 1997 as a laborer at various job sites in Illinois and Iowa, according to the lawsuit.

Jahn-Lamb states Lamb's exposure was foreseeable and should have been anticipated by the defendants, according to the lawsuit.

She claims his disease was caused after he was exposed to and inhaled, ingested or otherwise absorbed asbestos fibers.

Jahn-Lamb alleges the asbestos-related disease caused great medical costs. Lamb experienced great physical pain and suffering and emotional distress before his death, Jahn-Lamb claims in the lawsuit.

The disease caused Lamb a shorter and less enjoyable life, Jahn-Lamb claims.

Mesothelioma hindered and prevented Lamb from pursuing his normal course of employment, according to the suit.

As a result, he lost large sums of money, Jahn-Lamb claims.

Lamb's family has been deprived of his support and his society and incurred funeral and burial costs, according to the complaint.

In the four-count lawsuit, Jahn-Lamb seeks sums in excess of $300,000 and unspecified economic damages.

She has demanded a jury trial.

Jahn-Lamb is represented by Andrew O'Brien, Christopher Thoron, Christina J. Nielson, Bartholomew J. Baumstark and Gerald J. Fitzgerald of O'Brien Law Firm in St. Louis.