Manganism or welder's disease is a very slow developing condition that is difficult to prove as a direct result of the welding rod use. Since Parkinson's disease is also developed late in life, many of the legal battles have been over the exact cause of the Parkinson's like conditions, and if they are, in fact, related to the use of welding rods.

Workers that are engaged in lawsuits for welding rod toxicity are suing the welding rod manufacturers for not correctly identifying and informing welders of the dangers and health risks of inhaling the fumes produced when the rods are super heated to weld.

Various lawsuits have claimed, as with the tobacco lawsuits, that the welding rod manufacturers both knew and refused to disclose or even actively covered up the knowledge about the potential damage that using the welding rods in poorly ventilated areas could cause. Some of these lawsuits are over one million dollars, and at least one lawsuit has been granted to the worker.