Lawyers representing a welder who claimed exposure to high levels of manganese caused his Parkinson's disease say a judgment in favor of their client was the first of its kind. An Illinois jury awarded $1 million in damages to former welder Larry Elam, who said his exposure to manganese in welding fumes caused him to develop Parkinson's, a disease of the central nervous system that affects movement and coordination.

Elam sued three companies that provided welding rods for Union Electric, where he worked in Missouri for 29 years. The jury found the businesses negligent in warning or instructing workers, or in properly investigating complaints regarding manganese exposure.

Vaughan Cascino, a Chicago law firm, called the decision "the first legal win for welders, who have been battling rod makers and employers for decades over the issue of fume-induced illness, despite the fact that exposure to toxic levels of manganese has been a known health hazard since the 1930s."