Western MacArthur Asbestos Bankruptcy Trust
Asbestos Trust Funds Claims and Mesothelioma
U.S Asbestos Bankruptcy Trusts Funds have paid out nearly 21 billion to more than 600,000 asbestos claimants. There are about 60 active Asbestos Trust Funds with an estimated $32 billion in remaining assets.
Asbestos Settlement Trusts were established to help compensate workers and their families for asbestos exposure causing Mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases. When an Asbestos company establishes a Trust Fund all settlements are managed by trustees that decide the compensation amounts paid to Mesothelioma claimants. U. S. Courts allow Asbestos defendants to file for protection under a legal process known as bankruptcy reorganization. This allows the company to pay claims and stay in business.
Asbestos Trust Fund settlements typically do not come with an admission of guilt by the asbestos company that set up the trust.
Global Asbestos Disaster Study Estimates More than 39,000 USA Deaths Annually from Asbestos-Related Diseases.
Specifically, asbestos contributes to 34,270 lung cancer deaths, 3,161 mesothelioma deaths, 787 ovarian cancer deaths, 443 larynx cancer deaths and 613 chronic asbestosis death. Source: www.adao.us
Western MacArthur Asbestos Bankruptcy Trust
Facts:
Founded: 1913
Head Quarters: St.Paul, Minnesota
Turn out: Construction materials, including insulation products
Operating status: Western MacArthur is no longer actively operating, but its parent company, MacAuthor, is still operating
Asbestos Trust: Yes
Trust began: 2004
Trust Amount: $2 billion
Asbestos Trust Fund
After Western McArthur filed for bankruptcy in 2002 due to overwhelming claims, they began the reorganization process. Once their bankruptcy plan was officially approved in 2004, they established the Western Asbestos Settlement Trust. The trust was created to handle all future and current claims for MacArthur Company, Western Asbestos Company, and Western MacArthur Company. Initially, the trust was funded with $2 billion.
Asbestos Litigation
Western MacArthur, Western Asbestos, and MacArthur have been named in thousands of asbestos lawsuits. Well-known cases include:
1982 – Jack Kaminski and his wife filed claims against multiple asbestos companies, including Western MacArthur. Jack Kaminski developed mesothelioma after working as a shifter’s helper in 1942. While working, he assisted in installing aluminum bars in destroyer ships, holding the bars together while being welded. He used an asbestos blanket to shield himself from any sparks while working. When the blanket would stretch and tear, asbestos fibers were released into the air. Kaminski’s hair and clothes would become covered in asbestos. Western Asbestos Company supplied the asbestos products at the shipyard. Johns-Manville manufactured the cloth and insulation.
Western MacArthur Company was found liable for Western Asbestos Company’s dealings. The jury awarded Kaminiski and his family for personal injuries and loss of consortium.
1987– Janice C. Hughes filed a wrongful death suit on her husband, who passed away from an asbestos-related disease. Her husband worked for Western Asbestos for twenty-three years, from 1944 to 1967. In1977 he was diagnosed with mesothelioma and asbestosis and died shortly after the following year. Janice C. Hughes initially lost the case but won the appeal in 1987. Western MacArthur was held accountable for his illness and death.
Occupational Exposure
Since products containing asbestos were heavily prevalent in Western MacArthur, many individuals, including workers and the general public, were put at risk. Since the company expanded, there were multiple locations where individuals may have come into contact with asbestos materials. Some workers were exposed on a routine schedule, and due to effects have asbestos-related health complications. Various occupations that may have been affected include boiler workers, construction workers, electricians, factory workers, HVAC workers, industrial workers, insulators, machinists, maintenance workers, Navy veterans, pipefitters, plumbers, power plants workers, and shipyard workers.
Locations Western MacArthur was distributing asbestos-containing products include:
Chemical Plants
Court Buildings
High Schools
Hospitals
Recreational Facilities
History of Asbestos Use
MacArthur company was initially founded in 1913 and started manufacturing asbestos-containing pipe covering. MacArthur company changed its name to Western MacArthur after a merger with another construction company called Western Asbestos company.
MacArthur took over Western Asbestos Company because Western Asbestos was struggling financially. In 1967, Western Asbestos Company was dissolved, and that’s when the new subsidiary, Western MacArthur, was created. Both companies were known for distributing asbestos-containing construction materials, and Western MacArthur did the same.
In 1930, when Western MacArthur was founded, it acquired a portion of Johns-Manville Corporation’s asbestos products. They were able to use $200,000 from the dissolved Western Asbestos Company to do so. The company distributed insulation, pipes, and cloth nationwide. All of them contained asbestos. Western MacArthur distributed Johns-Manville Corporation asbestos products until 1967. Their parent company, MacArthur, distributed Manville Corporation asbestos products from the early 1900s to 1976.
The products Western MacArthur manufactured needed to be heat resistant and withstand high amounts of pressure and chemicals. Companies often add asbestos to products such as insulation to achieve heat resistance. Asbestos is an inexpensive group of minerals that contain fibers that stop heat, and companies are allowed to use it as long as it doesn’t account for more than 1% of the product. The products Western MacArthur was distributing and manufacturing contained above the legal limit.
Employees working for Western MacArthur were exposed to environments full of airborne asbestos fibers. When exposed to large amounts of the materials as they were, it can cause diseases such as mesothelioma, asbestosis, and cancers with serious long-term effects.
Since the companies were distributing products containing asbestos, thousands of individuals, including workers and the general public, came into contact with asbestos.
Starting in the 1970s, Western, the company, began receiving asbestos-related claims. Most of these claims came from past workers. Western MacArthur was held liable for its asbestos distribution, MacArthur Company’s distribution, and Western Asbestos Company’s distribution.
Eventually, Western MacArthur became overwhelmed with asbestos claims and litigation costs. In 2002, they decided to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and reorganize.
Currently, MacArthur is the only one of the three companies still operating. Their products no longer contain asbestos.
Asbestos Products
Western MacArthur distributed and manufactured asbestos-containing products nationwide. The products they worked with include:
Asbestos Cloth
Asbestos Insulation
MacArthur Company Low-Pressure Pipe Cover
No. 1 Insulation Cement
No. 28 Insulation Cement
Unifil Vermiculite Insulation
7-V Insulation Cement
1-V Insulation Cement
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How Do Mesothelioma Trust Funds Work?
Asbestos exposure victim’s diagnosed with mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases can submit their claims to asbestos settlement trusts belonging to the bankrupt asbestos companies responsible for their illness. Surviving relatives of mesothelioma that have died from asbestos exposure are also eligible to submit claims to responsible asbestos trust funds.
After submitting a claim, asbestos trust funds decide whether to pay a claim. The decision to pay a claim is made separate from the company that created the trust fund.
Asbestos Trust Fund Information
- There are more than 65+ Asbestos Trust Funds set up by U. S. Courts.
- Asbestos bankruptcy reorganization can be a lengthy process that can span several years.
- Asbestos Trusts publish additional information about their Trust guidelines, qualifications and rules.
- Representatives of current and future Mesothelioma claimants must consent to any significant changes to these trusts.
- Since 1988, Asbestos trusts have paid out about $17.5 billion representing more than 3 million claims.
- Since 2011, Asbestos Trust Funds have combined assets of $36.8 billion.
- Since 2010, the average percentage paid per asbestos victim is 25 percent of a claim.
- Asbestos Trust Funds set Statutes of Limitations that only allow a certain amount of time to file an Asbestos claim.
- Mesothelioma Claimants can sometimes file both Asbestos Trust lawsuits and Asbestos claims.
- S. Courts must approve the amount that is set aside before the Asbestos company will be granted bankruptcy protection.
Evidence Required to File an Asbestos Trust Fund Claim
Diagnosis: Medical Documentation, including biopsy information, and pathology report, showing claimant is diagnosed with mesothelioma or an asbestos-related disease.
Physician Statement: The victim must also provide medical documentation to confirm the mesothelioma diagnosis, signed off by a doctor or mesothelioma specialist.
Exposure Evidence: Witness affidavits, employment records, company invoices linking a company product or facility to asbestos exposure.
Asbestos Trust Fund Claims
It is very important to contact a Mesothelioma lawyer soon after you have been diagnosed with Mesothelioma. The only known cause of this Mesothelioma is exposure to asbestos. Mesothelioma is a progressive disease, with a 10-50 year-latency period developing over years or even decades in many patients. Therefore, your statute of limitations does not begin with the time of exposure. Rather, it begins with your diagnosis that you have Mesothelioma.
If you have been diagnosed with Mesothelioma, you have legal rights. But you need to act quickly, because the statute of limitations in most states is 1-3 years.
Mesothelioma and Asbestos Exposure
- Malignant Mesothelioma is commonly diagnosed in people between the ages of 50 and 75 years old.
- There are 3000-3,500 malignant Mesothelioma cases diagnosed each year in the United States.
- 1 in 3 U. S. military veterans will develop an asbestos related disease in their lifetime.
Western MacArthur Asbestos Bankruptcy Trust and Mesothelioma Claims
A person diagnosed with Mesothelioma may be entitled to recover compensation for the following:
Factors that May Affect the Value a Mesothelioma Case Include:
- Age, Gender, Location, and Work History
- History of Military Service
- Pain and Suffering
- Where Asbestos Exposure Occurred
- How Many Asbestos Products are involved with Your Exposure
There Are 4 Primary Types of Mesothelioma Claims:
Product Liability – Can be filed against companies that manufactured and distributed asbestos products.
Medical Malpractice – Can be filed against doctors or hospitals if they misdiagnose or delay your diagnosis of Mesothelioma.
Workers Compensation – Can be filed against an employer if you were exposed to asbestos while on the job.
Wrongful Death – Can be filed against asbestos manufacturers, asbestos distributors, or an employer of a product containing asbestos that directly caused a person’s death if their actions constituted gross negligence for a deceased worker s safety.
How a Mesothelioma Attorney Can Help
An experienced Mesothelioma lawyer will help you to file a Mesothelioma lawsuit to hold negligent asbestos manufacturers and asbestos companies accountable for the severe pain and suffering that comes with a Mesothelioma cancer diagnosis.
Military Veterans Diagnosed With Mesothelioma
Recent Mesothelioma Verdicts
- $4.6 Million Mesothelioma Settlement: For a union insulator that developed malignant Mesothelioma from asbestos exposure.
- $10.2 Million Mesothelioma Verdict: For a Paper Mill worker suffering from pleural Mesothelioma.
- $8 Million Mesothelioma Award: For a man diagnosed with Mesothelioma.
- $1.2 Million Mesothelioma Settlement: For a 76-year-old carpenter that developed malignant Mesothelioma.
- $1.1 Million Veteran Mesothelioma Settlement: For a Navy veteran machinist that developed malignant Mesothelioma at age 71.
- $245,000 Asbestosis Settlement: For a Paper mill worker suffering from Asbestosis.
- $2.5 Million Mesothelioma Settlement: For a union pipefitter man who died from malignant Mesothelioma.
- $2.6 Million Shipyard Worker Mesothelioma Settlement: For the family of a 72-year old shipyard worker with Mesothelioma who suffered secondhand exposure.
- $5 Million Navy Veteran Mesothelioma Verdict: For a Navy Boilerman who developed Mesothelioma during his service.
- $1.8 Million Mesothelioma Settlement: For a carpenter that developed malignant Mesothelioma at age 68.
- $7.5 Million Mesothelioma Verdict: For a woman that developed peritoneal Mesothelioma from laundering her husband s work clothes.
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Settlement Averages for Mesothelioma Lawsuits
The average verdict in a mesothelioma lawsuit is about $2.4 million, and the average settlement is between $1 million and $1.4 million according to Mealey’s Litigation Report.
Malignant Mesothelioma
Malignant Mesothelioma is rare form of cancer that affects lining of the lungs, abdomen, heart, and major organs in the body. Mesothelioma is a disease in which malignant cancer cells are found in the sac lining the chest (pleura) or the abdomen (peritoneum). There are about 3,000 new malignant Mesothelioma cases diagnosed each year in the U. S. If you are experiencing any Mesothelioma symptoms you should contact a doctor immediately.
Diagnosed With Mesothelioma?
If you or a family member has been diagnosed with malignant Mesothelioma you are going to have a lot of questions about living with Mesothelioma and what legal options you have against asbestos manufacturers and asbestos companies for your asbestos exposure. Mesothelioma is a seriously deadly disease. According to the American Cancer Society with the average survival time for people with Mesothelioma is 4-18 months.
Mesothelioma Personal Injury Lawsuit
Can be filed by anyone after being diagnosed with mesothelioma cancer.
Can be Filed against companies responsible for a victim’s asbestos exposure.
A Mesothelioma personal injury lawsuit allows victim’s to receive compensation for pain, and suffering, lost wages, costly treatment, travel, and other and related costs.
Call TOLL FREE 888.640.0914 right now to talk with a live Mesothelioma Counselor that can answer many of your questions and give you the peace of mind that you need.
Family Member Died From Mesothelioma?
If you have a family member that has died from Mesothelioma cancer you should immediately consult with an experienced Mesothelioma diagnosis lawyer about what compensation may be available to you from asbestos trust funds that total more than 30 billion dollars.
Mesothelioma Wrongful Death Lawsuit
Can be filed by surviving family members after the death of a loved one from mesothelioma cancer.
Can be Filed against asbestos companies responsible for a victim’s asbestos exposure causing death.
A Mesothelioma wrongful death lawsuit allows victims to receive compensation for burial and funeral expenses, lost wages, loss of companionship, and other and related costs.
It is VERY IMPORTANT that you file your Mesothelioma claim within your states Statute of Limitations.
We have seen many families lose their right to file a lawsuit because their Statute of Limitations had expired while they were grieving. We know it is a tough time to grieve the loss of a loved one, but please do not let your Statute of Limitations expire for filing your Mesothelioma lawsuit. In most states the Statute of Limitations is 2-3 years. Some states have 6-year Statute of Limitations.
Mesothelioma Latency Period
Mesothelioma has a long latency period of 10-50 years. Many Veterans, Shipyard Workers, Construction Workers, Power Plant Workers, Mill Workers, Steel Workers, Railroad Workers, Pipefitters, Insulators, Electricians, Carpenters, Welders, Auto Mechanics, Veterans, Factory Workers, and laborers are living in the early stages of a variety of asbestos related diseases. Many Mesothelioma lawyers will not accept asbestosis, asbestos lung cancer, pleural plaques, pleural thickening, colon cancer and esophageal cancer cases.
There is More Than 30 Billion Dollars Set Aside for Mesothelioma and Asbestos Victims in Asbestos Bankruptcy Trusts
Need a Mesothelioma Lawyer?
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Workers and Asbestos Containing Products
People that worked in shipyards, refineries, power plants, mills, factories, plants, salvage yards, engine rooms, installing brakes, gaskets, insulation, valves and pipes have a higher risk of developing an asbestos related disease in their lifetime.
How Second-Hand Asbestos Exposure Occurs
When asbestos is disturbed, broken apart, cut, decayed, or damaged, it releases tiny asbestos microscopic fibrous particles that can cling to hair and clothing. These asbestos fibers are easily transferred to others where they can accumulate in the lining of lungs that cause mesothelioma lung
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