Many companies that made, or continue to make asbestos-containing products chose to file for bankruptcy to help avoid corporate liability for patients’ legal claims. Some companies truly went bankrupt. But other companies, such as Halliburton, remain viable companies today and merely used bankruptcy proceedings as a shield from future claims. It may seem hard to believe, but declaring bankruptcy actually allowed for some companies to minimize their liability. We couldn’t stand by and just let them get away with it.
Our firm stepped in to ensure that, wherever possible, asbestos bankruptcy trust funds were created to compensate the asbestos patients harmed by exposure to a company’s asbestos products. Creating these trusts required a significant number of hours, in-depth negotiations, and time from our mesothelioma trust lawyers with high-level experience that few other law firms have. Despite this level of work, we were proud to be part of this important process.
Our Attorney Negotiated a $4 Billion Halliburton Trust Fund
In 2002, firm founder and current managing director, Russell Budd led the negotiations surrounding the creation of the $4 billion Halliburton national asbestos bankruptcy trust fund. The agreement our firm reached with Halliburton ultimately created the largest asbestos trust fund of its kind anywhere in the world. This fund is now accessible to asbestos patients throughout the country, not only our firm’s clients, and, over more than a decade, has provided important financial assistance to mesothelioma patients and their families. Our firm was not compensated for the additional work that went into settling up this trust fund.
Today, our firm’s mesothelioma lawyers serve on numerous Asbestos Trust Advisory Committees and actively work to protect the rights of anyone harmed by companies that have set up trusts. A partial list of the committees we sit on is below.
Mesothelioma Trust Fund Committees Our Attorneys Advise
- Armstrong World Industries
- ACMC
- Babcock and Wilcox
- Combustion Engineering
- Federal Mogul
- Fuller Austin
- G-1 Holdings, Inc.
- Johns-Manville
- JT Thorpe Co.
- Owens-Corning Fibreboard
- Swan Transportation
- United States Gypsum (USG)
How an Asbestos Bankruptcy Trust Affects Your Case
Just because an asbestos company has filed bankruptcy does not mean you can’t pursue compensation.
Since the early 1980s, many companies that manufactured asbestos products have filed for bankruptcy after facing numerous asbestos lawsuits. These companies claimed that they did not have enough money to sustain all the current and projected mesothelioma and asbestos disease claims, so filing for bankruptcy allowed them a level of protection from mesothelioma and asbestos lawsuits.
The Creation of Asbestos Trusts
In the wake of the harmful and often deadly effects of the asbestos crisis, Congress amended the United States Bankruptcy Code and created asbestos trust funds. Asbestos companies filing for bankruptcy could now establish trusts for asbestos victims and shift all liability for present and future asbestos exposure claims in order to emerge from bankruptcy without liability. These trusts make payments based on agreements negotiated between your attorney and the asbestos companies, then the dollar payout amount must be approved by the courts.
The Mechanics of a Bankruptcy Trust Claim
When an asbestos company decides to file for bankruptcy and establish a trust, any pending or future lawsuits are suspended and are funneled to the trust after it is established. A court oversees the creation of an asbestos creditors’ committee composed of representatives from different stakeholders to help create and govern the trust. There are two kinds of creditors: the businesses that the asbestos company currently owns and representatives for current and future parties who currently have or will have a claim against the company for an asbestos illness, such as mesothelioma.
The creditors’ committee works with the company to create a reorganization plan and to transfer all current and future mesothelioma lawsuits to a bankruptcy trust. Once the court accepts the reorganization plan, asbestos claims can resume and are redirected to the trusts.
Our attorneys sit on several Asbestos Trust Advisory Committees, including trusts for the companies listed below. However, we have the experience to file claims against any company with a bankruptcy trust fund for mesothelioma victims.
List of Most Active Mesothelioma Trust Funds
- Armstrong World Industries
- ACMC
- Halliburton
- Babcock & Wilcox
- U.S. Gypsum Asbestos Trust (USG)
- Babcock & Wilcox
- Combustion Engineering
- Kaiser
- Combustion Engineering
- Federal Mogul
- ACandS
- Fuller Austin
- Eagle Picher
- G-1 Holdings, Inc.
- Johns-Manville
- JT Thorpe Co.
- Congoleum
- AWI
- W.R. Grace
- Celotex
- Owens-Corning Fibreboard
- Swan Transportation
- United States Gypsum (USG)
This is not yet a comprehensive list.
What does our knowledge of trust fund claims mean for your case?
When we file a claim against a company (or companies) that has filed for bankruptcy, you will go through the normal discovery process with one of our mesothelioma attorneys. During this process, we will work with you to find when and where you were most likely exposed to asbestos. After the discovery process, your attorney will submit your claim(s) to the asbestos trusts separately from your lawsuit, if you have an active lawsuit in addition to bankruptcy claims.
Contact a Lawyer for Asbestos Trust Fund Compensation
If you worked for any company in the list above, or were exposed to products with asbestos, at work or school, call Baron & Budd today at 855-280-7664 or complete our contact form to schedule a free consultation. In most cases, you don’t have to file a lawsuit to get paid the compensation you deserve from a trust fund for mesothelioma victims.