Business & Professional

LEGAL

Tracking Asbestos

Local attorneys lead educational
seminar conducted in Japan.

B

irmingham attorneys Michael
B. Serling and Philip J.
Goodman recently traveled to
Japan to address the Pollution Control
and Environmental Conservation
Committee of the Osaka Bar Association
on the topic of "Asbestos Issues in the
United States!'
Serling and Goodman, who have rep-
resented asbestos personal injury victims
and owners of buildings containing asbes-
tos materials, induding most Michigan
school districts and major real estate
developers, also spoke at the Life Risk
Institute at Doshisha University in Kyoto.
In recent years, Japan has begun to
experience a substantial increase in the
number of asbestos-related diseases
among industrial workers and residents
living near manufacturing facilities that
used substantial amounts of asbestos.
Reported diagnoses of mesothe-
lioma, a cancer of the lining of internal
organs, have risen substantially, and are
expected to trend upward until the year
2040. Predictions of an estimated 1,500
mesothelioma deaths per year in Japan
(approximately one-half the annual U.S.
death rate, in a country with less than

half the U.S. population) appear to be
accurate.
Serling, who handled the first
Michigan asbestos-related wrongful
death case, addressed issues of concern
to Japanese lawyers. He spoke about the
evolution of American law regarding
asbestos personal injury and property
litigation. Goodman addressed many
of the issues relating to operating and
maintaining buildings containing
asbestos materials.
Their staff investigators, Joel A.
Waterstone and Dwight Noble Baker
Jr., provided detailed information on
the identification of asbestos-contain-
ing materials that are still in place in
Japanese industrial, commercial and
residential facilities.
Because Japan continued to use
asbestos for many years longer than
the United States, the long "latency"
period for asbestos-related diseases is
now catching up to those exposed in
Japanese plants and worksites.
Serling and Goodman shared many of
their experiences handling asbestos per-
sonal injury and property damage cases
throughout the U.S. and internationally. ❑

Above: Michael Serling,
Philip Goodman,

Dwight Baker and
Joel Waterstone with

representatives of the
Osaka Bar Association.

Right: Goodman and
Serling in Kyoto awaiting
the famous bullet train,

the Shinkonsen.

2009 Jack J. Rehmann Community Leadership Award

Tripl 0 • t

CD

Three options to manage your money.

07r outstanding commitment
to our community and its
volunteer organizations we are pleased
to name Larry Slutsky as a recipient
of the 2009 Jack J. Rehmann
Community Leadership Award.
Each year, Rehmann associates donate
thousands of hours of service to
community organizations.
We are proud of these collective
accomplishments and have established
the Jack J. Rehmann Community
Leadership Award to recognize those
who go "above and beyond" for their
communities. Thank you, Larry, for your
fine accomplishments! We appreciate
and applaud your efforts.

One-time rate increase.

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Farmington Hills, MI 48334

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February 4 • 2010

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