Secondary Asbestos Exposure — Mesothelioma Claims for Family Members
Introduction
Mesothelioma is not only a disease of workers. For decades, asbestos fibers traveled home from Connecticut's shipyards, aircraft plants, and manufacturing facilities on the clothing, hair, and skin of workers — exposing spouses, children, and other household members to the same deadly mineral that caused mesothelioma in the workers themselves.
This is known as secondary asbestos exposure — sometimes called take-home exposure or household exposure — and it is a recognized and compensable cause of mesothelioma in Connecticut courts. If you developed mesothelioma without ever having worked directly with asbestos, but a family member worked at a Connecticut asbestos exposure site, you may have a significant legal claim.
Jazlowiecki & Jazlowiecki LLC has been handling Connecticut mesothelioma litigation for over 22 years, including cases involving secondary exposure. Our mesothelioma attorneys understand the specific evidence needed to establish a secondary exposure claim and the legal theories that support recovery for family members. Contact us today for a free, confidential case evaluation.
How Secondary Asbestos Exposure Occurs
Workers at Connecticut's major industrial facilities — Electric Boat in Groton, Pratt & Whitney in East Hartford, Sikorsky in Stratford, and GE in Bridgeport — handled asbestos-containing materials throughout their working lives. Pipe fitters, insulators, boilermakers, machinists, and assembly workers often returned home covered in asbestos dust that was invisible to the naked eye.
Secondary exposure typically occurred through:
- •Laundering work clothing — shaking out, washing, and handling asbestos-contaminated work clothes released fibers into the air of the home
- •Physical contact — hugging, touching, or being near a worker returning from a shift before they changed clothes or showered
- •Presence in the home — fibers that settled on furniture, carpets, and surfaces created ongoing low-level exposure for all household members
- •Handling tools and equipment — some workers brought tools home that were contaminated with asbestos dust
Spouses who regularly laundered a worker's asbestos-contaminated clothing have been found to have mesothelioma at rates significantly higher than the general population. This risk was documented as early as the 1960s — but the companies whose products caused the exposure did not warn workers or their families.
Secondary Exposure at Connecticut's Major Asbestos Sites
Electric Boat — Groton
Each submarine built at Electric Boat contained approximately 60,000 pounds of asbestos thermal insulation. Workers in pipe fitting, insulation, boilermaking, and electrical trades brought home significant quantities of asbestos dust daily. Family members of Electric Boat workers — particularly spouses who laundered work clothes — have been diagnosed with mesothelioma decades after the exposure occurred. See our Electric Boat asbestos exposure page for more.
Pratt & Whitney — East Hartford
Asbestos was present throughout the Pratt & Whitney East Hartford facility — in pipe insulation, boiler insulation, furnace linings, and engine components. Workers across many trades brought asbestos fibers home on their clothing. At least 17 asbestos bankruptcy trusts list Pratt & Whitney as a known exposure site, and family members who developed mesothelioma through secondary exposure may be eligible to file claims against multiple trusts. See our Pratt & Whitney asbestos exposure page.
Sikorsky Aircraft — Stratford
Asbestos-containing brake linings, gaskets, heat shields, and the FM-37 adhesive used on helicopter rotor blades were regular sources of asbestos dust at Sikorsky. Workers in the blade shop and assembly areas brought these fibers home. The Bagley v. Adel Wiggins Group case — a landmark Connecticut mesothelioma case — involved a Sikorsky worker whose family was exposed through take-home contamination. See our Sikorsky asbestos exposure page.
General Electric — Bridgeport
GE's Bridgeport facility is the subject of a 2025 lawsuit alleging environmental asbestos releases into the surrounding neighborhood between 1964 and 1982 — meaning exposure was not limited to workers or their families but potentially extended to anyone who lived near the plant. A family member who lived near GE's Bridgeport facility during this period may have a separate environmental exposure claim in addition to or instead of a secondary exposure claim. See our GE asbestos exposure page.
The Legal Theory — How Secondary Exposure Claims Work
A secondary asbestos exposure claim follows the same basic legal framework as a direct exposure claim — but requires establishing the chain of exposure from the worksite to the home. The key elements are:
- •The worker's exposure — establishing where, when, and how the family member's spouse or relative was exposed to asbestos at work — including the specific asbestos-containing products involved
- •The take-home pathway — demonstrating how asbestos fibers traveled from the worksite to the home — through work clothing, tools, or the worker's person
- •The family member's exposure — establishing that the claimant was regularly exposed to asbestos fibers brought home from the worksite
- •Causation — connecting the secondary exposure to the development of mesothelioma — supported by expert medical and scientific testimony
Secondary exposure cases often involve the same defendants as direct exposure cases — the manufacturers of asbestos-containing products used at the worksite — and are eligible for the same asbestos trust fund claims. The manufacturers of pipe insulation, gaskets, and other asbestos products knew that take-home exposure was dangerous as early as the 1960s and failed to warn workers or their families.
Asbestos Trust Fund Claims for Secondary Exposure Victims
Over $30 billion is currently held in more than 60 asbestos bankruptcy trusts established by companies that manufactured or sold asbestos-containing products. Family members who developed mesothelioma through secondary exposure are eligible to file claims with these trusts — independently of any civil lawsuit and independently of any claim filed by the worker. Trust claims require documentation of the worker's employment history and exposure to specific products, but do not require proof that the family member was present at the worksite. See our asbestos trust funds page for more detail.
What Compensation Can Secondary Exposure Victims Recover?
- •Medical expenses — past and future treatment costs, including surgery, chemotherapy, radiation, and immunotherapy
- •Lost wages and reduced earning capacity — if mesothelioma has affected your ability to work
- •Pain and suffering — physical and psychological
- •Loss of consortium — the impact of the illness on your relationship with your spouse and family
- •Wrongful death damages — if a family member has died from secondary exposure mesothelioma
Connecticut Statute of Limitations — Secondary Exposure
Connecticut's statute of limitations for mesothelioma is three years from the date of diagnosis (Conn. Gen. Stat. § 52-584) — not from the date of exposure, and not from the date the worker was exposed. This means family members who receive a mesothelioma diagnosis today have three years from that date to file a claim, regardless of when the original workplace exposure occurred.
For wrongful death claims — where the family member has died from mesothelioma — the statute of limitations is two years from the date of death (§ 52-555). Do not wait.
Frequently Asked Questions
I never worked with asbestos but my husband did. Can I file a mesothelioma claim?+−
Yes. Secondary asbestos exposure — where a family member brought asbestos fibers home on work clothing — is a recognized and compensable cause of mesothelioma in Connecticut courts. You do not need to have worked at a job site to have a valid claim. What matters is that you were regularly exposed to asbestos fibers that originated at your spouse's or family member's workplace.
My father worked at Electric Boat in the 1960s and I developed mesothelioma. Do I have a case?+−
Possibly yes. Children who grew up in households where a parent worked at Electric Boat, Pratt & Whitney, Sikorsky, or other Connecticut asbestos sites may have been exposed through the take-home pathway. The strength of your claim depends on the nature and duration of your father's work, the asbestos-containing products involved, and your exposure history in the home. Contact us for a confidential evaluation.
Can I file a trust fund claim even though I never worked at the asbestos site?+−
Yes. Asbestos trust funds allow family members to file claims based on the worker's exposure — not the family member's. The trust claim is filed in the family member's name based on the documented workplace exposure of the relative who brought asbestos home. Many Connecticut secondary exposure victims qualify for multiple trust fund claims simultaneously.
The worker who exposed me has already settled a claim. Does that prevent me from filing?+−
No. Your claim is entirely independent of any claim the worker filed or settled. Secondary exposure victims have their own separate legal rights against the manufacturers of the asbestos-containing products that caused the exposure — and their own right to file trust fund claims. A settlement or verdict in the worker's case does not extinguish your rights.
Why Jazlowiecki & Jazlowiecki LLC?
Jazlowiecki & Jazlowiecki LLC has been handling Connecticut mesothelioma and asbestos litigation for over 22 years. Founding partner Edward Jazlowiecki holds a degree in Chemical Engineering — giving the firm a scientific understanding of asbestos products, exposure pathways, and the specific materials used at Connecticut's major industrial facilities. We handle mesothelioma cases on a contingency basis — no fee unless we win.
View our full case results:
- •$72 million recovered for victims of the Lac-Mégantic train disaster (global multi-party settlement)
- •$4.3 million — Propecia global settlement
The $72M recovery involved multiple parties and law firms.
Contact Jazlowiecki & Jazlowiecki LLC — Free Case Evaluation
If you or a family member have been diagnosed with mesothelioma or an asbestos-related disease, contact Jazlowiecki & Jazlowiecki LLC today for a free, no-obligation case evaluation. Visit our mesothelioma lawyers page to learn more, or submit a free case evaluation online.
Call: (860) 589-8000 — available 24/7
Email: Info@Jazlowiecki.com
No fee unless we win. Connecticut statute of limitations: 3 years from date of diagnosis.