Asbestos trust funds are pools of money that bankrupt asbestos manufacturers were required to set aside to compensate people harmed by their products. Together they hold more than $30 billion, and they exist specifically so that victims can still be paid even though the company went bankrupt.

Why Trust Funds Exist

As asbestos lawsuits mounted through the 1980s and beyond, dozens of major manufacturers filed for bankruptcy. Under the bankruptcy process (Section 524(g) of the bankruptcy code), companies were required to establish trusts funded to pay current and future asbestos claims — rather than simply disappearing and leaving victims with no recourse. The trusts are managed independently and pay claims according to published criteria.

Companies With Asbestos Trusts

Many of the largest names in asbestos have trusts, including Johns-Manville, Owens Corning (Fibreboard), Pittsburgh Corning, W.R. Grace, Celotex, Armstrong, Babcock & Wilcox, Combustion Engineering, U.S. Gypsum, and dozens more. The AsbestosIndex manufacturer database documents the companies and products behind these trusts.

How a Trust Claim Works

  • No lawsuit required. Most trust claims are filed and paid administratively, outside of court.
  • Multiple trusts at once. Because a worker was usually exposed to products from several bankrupt companies, one exposure history can support claims against many trusts.
  • Evidence-based. Each trust publishes the exposure and diagnosis criteria it requires. A claim must document the diagnosis and show exposure to that company’s product.
  • Payment percentages. Trusts pay a set “value” for a qualifying claim, adjusted by a payment percentage that keeps enough money available for future victims — so a trust may pay a fraction of a claim’s scheduled value.

How Claims Are Evaluated and Filed

Filing a trust claim is not a do-it-yourself process. It involves confirming an asbestos-related diagnosis, documenting exposure to a specific company’s products, and meeting each trust’s own criteria and forms. Identifying which trusts an exposure history reaches — and assembling the product-identification evidence involved — is the work of an experienced asbestos attorney, who investigates the history and pursues the qualifying trusts and defendants together.

Trust Funds vs. Lawsuits

Trust claims and civil lawsuits are not either/or. A person can file trust claims against bankrupt companies and sue still-solvent ones, pursuing a legal claim through both.

If you were diagnosed with mesothelioma or another asbestos-related disease and were exposed to asbestos products made by companies with bankruptcy trusts, you may be entitled to file trust-fund claims in addition to any civil litigation.

This information is published by an independent media organization — not a law firm — and is educational only. It does not constitute legal advice or provide legal services. No outcome is promised or guaranteed.