If you had moderate to heavy exposure to asbestos earlier in your life, you may find that you are one of the unfortunate few who develops mesothelioma at some point.  Mesothelioma is a rare and serious cancer that affects the mesothelium, or the protective lining of your organs.

If you have had a positive mesothelioma diagnosis, the key to success both in medical and legal terms is not to sit on the diagnosis.  Your initial inclination may be to wait awhile and weigh your options, but the problem is that mesothelioma often evades correct diagnosis until it is in its advanced stages. Therefore, as soon as you learn about it, you need to get moving on treatment.

You also need to call an experienced mesothelioma lawyer.  There are some law firms that handle nothing but mesothelioma cases for people who have had undue exposure to asbestos.  The reason there is such a demand for this type of legal representation is that mesothelioma is a preventable cancer, and generally does not occur without the presence of asbestos.  So, if you were unwittingly exposed to the harmful effects of asbestos, then you will probably want to seek compensation on the basis that this could have been prevented had the right testing and research been done before the responsible company exposed you to the asbestos.

At first, your legal team will have to determine where and when the exposure occurred and to what extent.  This can get tricky because mesothelioma can take many years to develop.  Evidence needs to be collected linking your diagnosis to an exposure that may have occurred decades ago.  This is why you want to make sure you have a legal team who knows what they're doing.

While time is of the essence and you may be hoping for a generous out-of-court settlement, don't count on it.  Many mesothelioma cases end up going all the way to trial, and in the case of acquittal, you will then have to endure the appeals process as well.  

After you file your lawsuit, the defendant will be notified and given a chance to respond.  Then, both sides will do their evidence and information gathering, and you may be asked to answer numerous questions.  After that, the defendant will decide whether to offer you a settlement or take the case to trial.

What happens after that is often determined by your health.  If you are seriously ill, the court may choose to speed up the proceedings.  If not, then it could take quite a few months.  Though the waiting can be agony, you do not actually have to deal with any of the stressful proceedings - your lawyer will handle all that for you.