Do you need legal assistance handling an environmental matter in Chicago, IL? An experienced Chicago environmental lawyer can help you hold the responsible parties accountable for the harm you’ve suffered.
At Zayed Law Offices Personal Injury Attorneys, we can help you stand up to the at-fault company or property owner and their insurance companies. We have decades of experience handling complicated legal matters involving air, water, and landfill contamination. Since we founded our law firm, we’ve successfully recovered over $100 million in settlements or verdicts for our clients.
Regardless of the issues you’re facing, you can count on our team to help you fight to make things right. Contact our law firm in Chicago, Illinois, today at (312) 726-1616 to schedule a free consultation and learn more about this area of law.
How Can Zayed Law Offices Personal Injury Attorneys Help With My Environmental Law Case in Chicago?
You expect your home and business to be safe from contaminants. After all, strict environmental laws have been enacted to keep you safe. If someone violated these environmental regulations and you were harmed, you may be entitled to compensation.
Cases involving environmental issues are extremely complicated. An experienced Chicago personal injury attorney at Zayed Law Offices Personal Injury Attorneys can help you navigate the legal issues and fight for a fair deal.
Our lawyers can help by:
- Examining the facts and determining your cause of action
- Identify all parties who share responsibility
- Handling all paperwork and legal filings
- Assess your losses and calculate the value of your damages
- Work with experts and specialists who can link the harm you’ve suffered to the violation
- Negotiate with the insurance companies or defense teams for a fair settlement
It’s never too early to seek legal help. Call our Chicago personal injury lawyers to schedule your free consultation today.
We Handle All Types of Environmental Law Claims in Chicago
We handle all types of environmental matters in Chicago, including those involving:
Issues Involving Contaminated Groundwater and Drinking Water
If you or a family member suffered harm due to contaminated groundwater or drinking water, you may be entitled to file a lawsuit for damages.
For example, major corporations have been accused of contaminating the drinking water in the Chicago area with chemicals known as PFAS. More than 8 million people in Illinois get their drinking water from a facility that has been contaminated with at least one PFAS. There is no safe level of PFAS exposure. If you were exposed, you may be entitled to seek financial compensation if you developed certain types of illnesses, including cancer.
You may have a valid lawsuit if you were harmed due to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune. Camp Lejeune is a marine corps base located in North Carolina. Over the course of 80 years, tens of thousands of marines and their families were exposed to toxic chemicals in the water.
Exposure to the water, which was contaminated due to toxic chemicals dumped by a nearby dry cleaner, has been associated with a host of health issues, including:
- Bladder, liver and kidney cancer
- Leukemia
- Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
- Parkinson’s disease and other neurological disorders
- Immune system disorders
- Birth defects
- Aplastic anemia and other myelodysplastic syndromes
You may also have a valid claim for compensation if you were exposed to contaminated water in Flint, Michigan.
Contaminated water lawsuits can be extremely complicated. Each type of lawsuit has its own complications. Our Chicago environmental attorneys can help you fight to get justice if you were harmed. Contact us today to schedule a free consultation and discuss your case.
Sales or Purchases of Contaminated Property
Many complex issues must be addressed in cases involving the sale or purchase of contaminated property. These cases don’t always involve major environmental spills.
Determining who is ultimately responsible for the harm you have suffered is often the key issue. Property contamination may not be discovered for decades in some cases–and multiple entities may have controlled the property over the years.
If you or a loved one were harmed by a product, property, or public service that was contaminated, contact our lawyers today. We can help you discover who is liable for the cleanup costs and your damages.
Superfund (CERCLA) Claims
The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), commonly known as the Superfund, provides resources and means to hold at-fault parties accountable for uncontrolled or abandoned hazardous waste sites.
Both the original owner who contaminated the site and those who operated or controlled the site may potentially be liable under CERCLA.
RCRA Matters
The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). The RCRA gives the EPA authority to regulate both hazardous and non-hazardous solid wastes in the U.S. The term “solid waste” includes discarded solids, liquids and gasses.
The RCRA bans the open dumping of non-hazardous wastes and sets federal standards for the operation of municipal and industrial waste landfills. Under the RCRA, the EPA also set standards for the safe disposal of hazardous waste, including transportation, treatment and storage. The RCRA also regulates underground storage tanks.
Violation of the RCRA can result in both civil and criminal penalties.
Issues Involving Underground Storage Tanks
Illinois state laws govern underground storage tanks. Unfortunately, corporations don’t always follow the law. When that happens, they put everyone at risk. For example, when decades-old underground petroleum storage isn’t maintained or removed, the potential for explosions or underground soil contamination is strong.
If you were harmed due to leaking underground storage tanks, it’s important to seek legal advice. Our lawyers can help you fight to identify the at-fault parties and seek fair financial compensation.
Environmental Law Compliance
Environmental regulations are constantly changing in today’s world. Failure to comply can leave your organization exposed to significant financial penalties, civil liability and even criminal penalties. Our attorneys are also equipped to help your organization comply with these complex and challenging laws.
What Types of Compensation Can I Recover by Filing a Lawsuit?
The remedy for your claim will depend heavily on the nature of the damages you have suffered. Like any personal injury victim, you may be entitled to recover a range of economic damages and non-economic damages if you’ve suffered some type of physical harm.
Examples of the types of compensation that may be available include:
- Medical expenses
- Future medical bills
- The cost of replacing pipes in your home
- Lost wages
- Diminished earning capacity
- The cost of water treatment for your home
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Diminished quality of life
- Loss of fertility
- Reduced life expectancy
- Damages for wrongful death if you lost a loved one due to environmental violations
Our lawyers are here to help you identify the types of damages you’ve suffered–including the intangible losses you’ve suffered. If someone else was responsible for your losses, contact our law firm in Chicago to learn more about how our experienced environmental lawyers can protect you.
Who Can Be Held Liable for My Damages?
Any entity that contributed to the cause of the harm you’ve suffered can be held liable.
That may include:
- Corporations and businesses
- Government entities
- Landlords and property management companies
- Private individuals
The at-fault parties will depend on the facts and circumstances. It’s also possible that multiple parties may share liability for the same environmental violation.
How Much Is My Chicago Environmental Law Case Worth?
Your case value will depend on many unique factors, including:
- The nature of the harm you have suffered
- Whether there is a remedy that can prevent permanent harm
- Your medical treatment costs and property repair costs
- Whether your earnings have been impacted, and the amount you’ve lost
- The nature of the at-fault party’s actions
- Whether you’re eligible to participate in a class action or multi-district litigation
- How the injury or illness will impact your future
Even if a settlement fund has already been established, the at-fault party won’t simply offer a fair settlement. You’ll have to prove the value of your damages and convince the defense attorneys to pay what’s fair.
Is There a Deadline for Filing a Lawsuit in Illinois?
The statute of limitations in Illinois personal injury cases is typically two years. For example, if you were hurt in a car crash, you have two years from the date of the injury to take legal action.
Environmental cases are more complicated. Each set of regulations has its own specific deadlines and rules. Most of the time, victims don’t know they’ve been exposed to harmful toxins for years or even decades.
The important thing to understand is that you don’t have an unlimited amount of time to file a claim for compensation. If you suspect that you’ve suffered harm due to environmental violations, contact our lawyers. We’ll review your case for free and determine the applicable deadlines.
Contact a Skilled Chicago Environmental Lawyer for a Free Case Review Today
Were you harmed due to environmental contamination? Were you affected by vapor intrusions? Are you suffering due to a violation of state or federal environmental laws? Contact our Zayed Law Offices Personal Injury Attorneys today at (312) 726-1616. An experienced Chicago environmental lawyer can help you fight for every dollar you deserve.
