SALT LAKE CITY?Hundreds of Utah workers have joined in an effort to hold manufacturers and distributors of asbestos accountable for the workers? exposure to the cancer causing material.

Salt Lake City law firms are filing so many asbestos claims that 3rd District Judge Glenn Iwasaki has volunteered to guide the suits through a streamlined court process. That could mean faster resolution for the most seriously ill plaintiffs.

Materials containing asbestos were used in almost every part of construction before asbestos was banned in the United States in the 1970s.

The mineral?s microscopic fibers can cause serious lung problems or cancer in people who breathe them.