Asbestos Exposure in Connecticut

Connecticut’s industrial history created several settings where workers could have encountered asbestos-containing materials.

Some of the top industries impacted by asbestos exposure included:

• Shipbuilding
• Construction
• Automotive Work
• Manufacturing
• Carpentry
• Demolition

One of Connecticut’s clearest documented asbestos histories is in Stratford. Raymark Industries and its predecessor manufactured automotive brakes, clutches, gaskets, and other friction products at 75 East Main Street from 1919 to 1989.

The Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (DEEP) states that asbestos was mixed with heavy metals and resins during manufacturing, while EPA records show asbestos among contaminants in waste from the operation.

Raymark waste was also used as fill away from the original factory property. EPA has documented contamination at residential, commercial, recreational, municipal, and wetland locations around Stratford, resulting in decades of investigation and cleanup. In June 2026, EPA marked completion of another major phase of that work while cleanup continued elsewhere at the Superfund site.

Eastern Connecticut also has a long maritime history. General Dynamics Electric Boat has maintained shipbuilding-related operations in Groton, and the region remains closely connected with submarine construction and the U.S. Navy.

For someone diagnosed with mesothelioma, a detailed work history involving shipyards, vessel construction, repair, insulation, mechanical trades, or Navy service may help identify where asbestos contact could have occurred.

Learn more about asbestos exposure and mesothelioma.

Compensation Options for Asbestos Exposure in Connecticut

People diagnosed with mesothelioma may have more than one potential source of compensation. The options available depend on factors such as where exposure occurred, the companies or products involved, military service, employment history, and when a claim is filed.

Common options include:

• Personal-Injury Lawsuit: A person diagnosed with mesothelioma may be able to pursue claims against companies that are legally responsible for asbestos exposure when the evidence and filing requirements support a case.
• Wrongful-Death Claim: After a death, Connecticut law generally provides for a wrongful-death case to be brought by the executor or administrator of the deceased person’s estate.
• Asbestos Trust Fund Claim: Some companies that entered bankruptcy established trusts for qualifying asbestos claims, and each trust has its own exposure and medical criteria.
• VA Disability Compensation: Veterans may be eligible when they have a health condition caused by asbestos exposure and had contact with asbestos during military service. VA asks for medical records, service records, and evidence connecting the condition to military asbestos exposure.
• Workers’ Compensation: A work-related occupational disease may support a Connecticut workers’ compensation claim, subject to separate filing and causation requirements.

Our dedicated patient advocates can help you determine your potential compensation and identify your options, based on your unique circumstances and exposure history.

Contact us today for a free case evaluation.

Eligibility Requirements for Compensation in Connecticut

Eligibility is not determined by a diagnosis alone. A claim usually requires information linking the person’s illness and asbestos exposure to a particular employer, product, company, military assignment, jobsite, or other legally relevant source.

Useful evidence may include:

• Medical records: Pathology reports, imaging, physician records, and other documentation establishing the diagnosis.
• Employment history: Employer names, job titles, dates, job locations, union records, Social Security records, or pension documents.
• Exposure history: Information about asbestos-containing insulation, equipment, building materials, brakes, clutches, gaskets, packing, or other products encountered at work.
• Military records: Service dates, duty stations, occupational specialties, ships, bases, and assignments when military exposure may be relevant.
• Company and product information: Manufacturer names, product labels, invoices, work orders, specifications, coworker testimony, or other records connecting asbestos products with a workplace.
• Claimant authority: Estate documents or other records establishing who is legally permitted to pursue a claim after a death.
• Jurisdiction and timing: Where exposure occurred, where companies operated, where the claimant lives, and applicable filing deadlines can affect how and where a claim proceeds.

Mesothelioma Settlements & Verdicts in Connecticut

A mesothelioma case may resolve through a negotiated settlement or, when litigation proceeds through trial, a verdict. These outcomes are different and should not be treated as predictions of what another claimant will receive.

A settlement is an agreed resolution between the parties. It may occur before trial or while litigation is underway. A verdict is a decision reached after a case is tried before a judge or jury.

The value and outcome of an individual case can be affected by factors such as:

• The strength of the documented asbestos-exposure evidence
• The companies, products, and jobsites involved
• The claimant’s diagnosis and medical evidence
• The jurisdictions where claims can legally be filed
• The number and status of potentially responsible defendants
• Available asbestos trust claims or other compensation
• The claimant’s age, work history, and claimed damages
• Applicable defenses and procedural rules

Past settlements and verdicts cannot guarantee a future result. A case-specific review is needed to assess potential compensation options.

Exposure Risks in Connecticut

Connecticut residents may have encountered asbestos through industrial work, maritime trades, construction, automotive products, or contact with contaminated materials.

The relevant exposure history can differ substantially from one person to another.

Shipbuilding and Maritime Work

The Groton area has a longstanding connection to submarine construction through Electric Boat and nearby U.S. Navy activity.

The VA identifies shipyard work as an occupation associated with possible asbestos exposure and specifically lists insulation, pipes, gaskets, flooring, and other materials among products veterans and workers may have encountered.

Workers whose histories may warrant closer review include:

• Pipefitters
• Insulators
• Machinists
• Boiler and engine-room workers
• Welders
• Electricians
• Maintenance workers
• Ship repair personnel
• Navy veterans

Friction-Product Manufacturing and Automotive Work

Raymark’s Stratford operation manufactured brakes, clutch parts, gaskets, and related friction products. Connecticut DEEP documents asbestos as part of the manufacturing process, and EPA records asbestos among contaminants associated with Raymark waste.

Automotive mechanics and manufacturing workers may also have handled older brake linings and clutch facings, product categories the VA identifies in its asbestos-exposure guidance.

Construction, Renovation, and Demolition

Asbestos was historically used in insulation and many building products because of its heat resistance and durability. People who worked on older buildings may have encountered asbestos-containing materials during installation, maintenance, renovation, repair, or demolition.

Relevant trades can include:

• Insulators
• Plumbers and pipefitters
• Electricians
• Carpenters
• HVAC technicians
• Boiler workers
• Maintenance employees
• Demolition workers

Secondary Exposure

Workers sometimes carried asbestos dust home on clothing, shoes, tools, or personal belongings.

A family member diagnosed with mesothelioma should therefore consider whether anyone in the household worked in a shipyard, factory, construction trade, automotive occupation, or another job involving asbestos-containing materials.

Top Exposure Sites

Public records provide especially strong documentation for the former Raymark Industries operation and related waste-disposal areas in Stratford.

Inclusion below describes documented asbestos contamination or relevant industrial activity; it does not establish that any particular person was exposed or that a company is legally responsible.

• Raymark Industries Facility: Former brake, clutch, gasket, and friction-product manufacturing facility. EPA and CTDEEP document asbestos in manufacturing waste and site contamination.
• Raybestos Memorial Ballfield/OU4: EPA documented asbestos and other contaminants in fill associated with Raymark waste; cleanup milestones continued through 2026.
• Shore Road/OU5: EPA records describe asbestos and lead in contaminated material along the Housatonic River area.
• Additional Raymark Properties/OU6: EPA has addressed additional properties where Raymark waste was disposed of, including areas associated with asbestos-contaminated fill.
• Short Beach Park & Stratford Landfill/OU9: Identified by EPA as an operable unit within the wider Raymark Superfund cleanup.
• General Dynamics Electric Boat Operations: EPA records confirm longstanding industrial operations supporting submarine shipbuilding in Groton; maritime work histories may warrant asbestos-exposure investigation.

How to File for Mesothelioma Compensation in Connecticut

Mesothelioma compensation may involve lawsuits, asbestos trusts, veterans benefits, or workers’ compensation. Because each route has different evidence requirements and procedures, the first step is usually to identify every potentially applicable option.

1. Meet With a Mesothelioma Attorney

An attorney familiar with asbestos claims can review the diagnosis, work and military history, possible exposure locations, relevant companies, and the jurisdictions where a claim may be available. This review can also identify filing deadlines that may apply.

2. Gather Evidence and Documentation

Useful records may include:

• Medical and pathology records
• Employment and Social Security histories
• Military service records
• Union or pension records
• Product or equipment information
• Jobsite records
• Coworker or witness information
• Estate documents for a deceased claimant

A complete record is not always available at the beginning of a case. Historical research may help fill gaps.

3. File the Appropriate Claims

Depending on the facts, this could include a personal-injury or wrongful-death lawsuit, one or more asbestos trust claims, a VA disability claim, or a Connecticut workers’ compensation claim.

Each uses its own filing rules. For example, the VA permits disability claims online, by mail, in person, or with assistance from an accredited representative, while Connecticut workers generally use Form 30C to initiate a workers’ compensation claim.

4. Complete Claim Discovery or Review

A lawsuit may involve document exchange, depositions, expert evidence, and other civil discovery. Trust funds conduct their own claim review, the VA develops and evaluates disability evidence, and workers’ compensation claims proceed under Connecticut administrative rules.

Not every compensation option involves a courtroom or lawsuit-style discovery.

5. Settlement, Trial, Liquidation, or Benefit Decision

A civil lawsuit may end in settlement or trial. An asbestos trust may approve or deny a claim under its distribution procedures. Government programs issue their own benefit decisions.

The timing and outcome depend on the claim type and individual facts.

Connecticut Asbestos Litigation Rules

Connecticut has several filing rules that can become relevant in an asbestos case. Which rule controls depends on the legal theory, defendants, exposure history, and whether the claim involves personal injury, wrongful death, product liability, or workers’ compensation.

Product-Liability Claims

Connecticut General Statutes § 52-577a generally provides a three-year period for a product-liability claim measured from when the injury, death, or property damage is first sustained or discovered, or should have been discovered through reasonable care.

The statute also contains an asbestos-specific provision. The ordinary 10-year product-liability statute of repose does not apply in the same way to claims involving injury or death caused by asbestos exposure. The statute instead provides an outer limit of 80 years from the claimant’s last contact with or exposure to asbestos for personal-injury or death claims.

These provisions should not be used to calculate an individual filing deadline without reviewing the particular claim.

Wrongful Death

Connecticut General Statutes § 52-555 generally states that a wrongful-death claim must be brought within two years of death and no more than five years from the act or omission complained of. How that statute interacts with asbestos-specific product-liability provisions can depend on the facts and legal theory involved.

Workers’ Compensation

For an occupational disease, Connecticut General Statutes § 31-294c generally requires written notice of a workers’ compensation claim within three years from the first manifestation of a symptom of the occupational disease. Different provisions can apply to claims by dependents after a worker’s death.

Connecticut’s Workers’ Compensation Commission provides Form 30C and instructions for initiating a claim.

Jurisdiction and Multiple Claims

Someone who worked in Connecticut may also have exposure histories in other states, served in the military, worked for national employers, or encountered products made by companies headquartered elsewhere. These facts can affect where a lawsuit or other claim may be filed.

Asbestos trust claims may also proceed separately from civil litigation. Attorneys commonly evaluate trust, lawsuit, VA, and workers’ compensation options together so filing decisions can account for procedural and disclosure requirements.

Treatment Help in Connecticut

Patients in Connecticut can seek evaluation from cancer programs with thoracic oncology expertise. Mesothelioma is uncommon, so access to physicians experienced with cancers of the chest and multidisciplinary care can be especially useful when discussing treatment choices or a second opinion.

Yale Cancer Center maintains a Thoracic Oncology program whose physicians treat cancers of the chest. Its published team information specifically identifies mesothelioma among the diseases treated by its thoracic oncology specialists. Yale Cancer Center is based in New Haven.

Patients may want to ask a treating physician or specialist about:

• Whether the diagnosis and pathology should receive specialist review
• Which treatment approaches may be appropriate for the specific mesothelioma type and stage
• Whether surgery, systemic therapy, radiation, or a combination may be considered
• Whether an appropriate clinical trial is available
• Whether a second opinion from a mesothelioma-focused team would be helpful

Treatment decisions should be individualized with qualified medical professionals.

How We Can Help

A mesothelioma diagnosis can leave families trying to reconstruct jobs, military assignments, companies, products, and exposure events from decades ago. You do not have to organize every detail before asking for help.

Mesothelioma Fund can help you:

• Build a timeline of jobs, military service, and possible asbestos exposure
• Identify records that may help document older employment or worksites
• Understand possible lawsuit, trust fund, VA, and workers’ compensation options
• Prepare questions for an attorney or treatment provider
• Locate mesothelioma-related treatment resources
• Determine whether a free case review may be appropriate

Eligibility and compensation depend on the individual facts of each claim.

Frequently Asked Questions