Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California

The mere presence of asbestos is not necessarily, in and of itself, dangerous in any way. Only when asbestos containing products break down and release fine asbestos dust is there any issue. So unless whatever asbestos there is in the house is breaking down into asbestos dust, there is little or nothing to do other than make sure the landlord keeps the materials from breaking down. Most commonly that is done just by sealing them in place; often time well maintained latex paint is all it takes. If it is on heating ducts, they can be wrapped, etc.

A lot of homes have asbestos in them. Asbestos is not typically dangerous unless it is disturbed and becomes airborne. So living in a house with asbestos will not necessarily cause any injury. It is possible that the landlord didn't even know there was asbestos. If you can trace the health problems to the existence of the asbestos, you may have a claim against the landlord. I suspect that will be difficult to establish. Most asbestos related diseases do not develop and symptoms do not become apparent until 10-20 years after the exposure.