Background on Asbestos Trust Claims
In 1969, a man named Clarence Borel filed a lawsuit that would ultimately change the laws and give protection to millions of workers just like him.
A humble Texas insulation worker, Borel was the first person to win a lawsuit proving that asbestos exposure caused his mesothelioma — and that the manufacturers knew their products were dangerous since the 1930's but didn't warn anyone of those dangers. He sued 12 companies. He won against 11 of them.
The verdict shook the asbestos industry. And it directly led to the creation of asbestos bankruptcy trusts.
Over the next few decades, more than 60 asbestos companies filed a special kind of bankruptcy because of the volume of lawsuits from workers and families just like Borel’s. But these bankruptcies weren’t an escape from those lawsuits. Courts required the companies to create something permanent: asbestos trust funds.
These trusts were created to compensate people harmed by asbestos—not just back then, but for generations to come.
Clarence Borel didn’t want to sue. Like many workers, he just didn't feel right about suing companies that helped them earn a living and raise his family. But when he learned that their products had caused his mesothelioma—and that they had known the risks all along—he made the hard decision to take them to court. Not for himself, but to protect other workers.
The eleven companies found liable for Clarence’s death have each established asbestos trust funds—to compensate workers just like him. Because Clarence had the courage to fight, many people today don’t have to file a lawsuit to receive compensation. His case helped build the foundation for a system that allows injured workers and their families to access justice without going to court.
Learn more about Clarence Borel and his lawsuit that protects workers over 50 years after his death.
What Are Asbestos Bankruptcy Trusts?
Asbestos trusts were created through the bankruptcy process when courts forced companies to take responsibility for the harm they caused. In exchange for continuing to operate, these companies had to direct insurance proceeds and stock shares into special trusts that would compensate victims of the companies' conduct.
That money is still there today—managed by financial professionals under court supervision. It doesn’t come from taxpayers. It doesn’t affect current jobs. And it’s not charity.
These trusts were funded with billions of dollars in insurance coverage—policies asbestos companies purchased not out of caution, but because they knew their products were dangerous and expected to be sued. They didn’t hope to avoid harm—they expected it. And they insured themselves against the consequences.
Take Owens-Illinois, for example. In the mid-1940s, they were developing a new insulation product called Kaylo. Before bringing it to market, they hired a consultant to assess the health risks. The verdict? Because Kaylo contained both asbestos and silica, it would be a "first-class hazard"—to the workers who made it and the customers who used it.
Owens-Illinois was warned. But they brought Kaylo to market anyway. And when Owens-Corning took over manufacturing Kaylo in 1958, they already knew about the hazard. Yet both companies continued making and selling Kaylo for nearly three decades.
That very product—Kaylo insulation—was one of the materials that gave Clarence Borel mesothelioma. He recalled working with it at a number of refineries in Texas and Louisiana.
Today, both Owens-Illinois and Owens-Corning have asbestos bankruptcy trusts—funded with insurance money the companies secured to protect themselves from the fallout of selling a product they were warned was too dangerous to sell.
And while both companies eventually filed for bankruptcy, that didn’t mean they shut down. In this context, “bankruptcy” doesn’t mean out of business—it means they reorganized under court supervision and were required to set aside money for their victims so they could keep operating. In fact, as of 2024, Owens-Illinois and Owens-Corning employed nearly 50,000 people and generated nearly $20 billion in revenue.
If you were exposed to asbestos—even decades ago—you may be eligible to file claims with multiple trusts and recover substantial compensation. And that compensation doesn’t come from taxpayers, current employees, or consumers. It comes from insurance policies and investment proceeds—specifically purchased by companies that knew their products were dangerous. Filing a trust claim will not hurt anyone. But it may help you and your family in a life-changing way.
Who Can File an Asbestos Trust Claim?
Asbestos trust funds were created for one reason: to compensate people who were harmed by asbestos—whether that exposure happened to a worker in a shipyard or to a spouse in a laundry room washing a worker's clothing, decades ago or more recently.
If you or a loved one was diagnosed with an asbestos-related disease, you may be eligible to file a claim. And that includes many people who never worked directly with asbestos. Asbestos trust claims fall into two categories:
Workplace or Primary Exposure
For individuals who worked directly with or around asbestos—at jobsites like factories, refineries, power plants, shipyards, or construction sites.
Take-home or Secondary Exposure
For family members who were exposed indirectly, by living with someone who brought asbestos fibers home on their clothes, skin, or hair.
We offer free health tests to the families of asbestos workers because studies consistently show elevated rates of asbestos-related diseases in the family members of asbestos workers.
What Illnesses Qualify for Payments?
These diseases are well-established in medical literature as being caused or significantly aggravated by asbestos exposure—and are commonly recognized by asbestos trusts:
Mesothelioma – A rare cancer of the lungs, abdomen, or heart lining. Caused almost exclusively by asbestos. Even brief exposure can be enough.
Lung Cancer – Strongly linked to asbestos, especially in workers with smoking histories. Trusts routinely compensate cases where asbestos played a contributing role.
Asbestosis – A progressive lung disease caused by inhaling asbestos fibers. Leads to scarring, shortness of breath, and respiratory failure.
Throat, Laryngeal, Stomach, or Colon Cancer – Inhaled or ingested asbestos fibers can lead to these diseases, especially in long-term industrial workers.
Each trust has its own medical standards, but we work with board-certified physicians who know how to prepare the documentation needed to prove your diagnosis. Asbestos trusts claims aren't available for women who develop ovarian cancer, but they do have other legal options.
Learn more about the diseases that asbestos can cause.
How Much Asbestos Exposure is Enough to Qualify?
For mesothelioma, even a few days of exposure may be enough because multiple studies have found that even brief exposures to asbestos can cause mesothelioma.
For asbestosis or other types of cancer, most trusts require evidence of cumulative exposure—typically five years or more—but that can include time across multiple jobs or worksites. In some cases, it can also include both childhood exposure from a parent's job and occupational exposure later in life.
If you’re not sure whether your exposure qualifies, don’t guess. Let us investigate.
What Type of Evidence Do You Need to File a Claim?
To qualify, you generally need to show that you've been diagnosed with a compensable illness due to exposure to a covered product during specific years. Let's break that down:
A Compensable Diagnosis
To qualify for an asbestos trust claim, you need a diagnosis of an asbestos-related disease recognized by the trust, such as mesothelioma, asbestosis, or lung cancer linked to asbestos exposure. We’ll assist in gathering pathology reports, imaging, and medical statements to meet trust standards. If you smoked, you remain eligible—smoking does not disqualify your claim. Here’s why:
Smoking Doesn’t Cause Mesothelioma or Asbestosis: These diseases are directly tied to asbestos exposure, not tobacco.
Distinct Lung Damage: Doctors can identify asbestos-related scarring (e.g., pleural plaques) even in smokers, using imaging or pathology to distinguish it from smoking-related damage.
Increased Lung Cancer Risk: Asbestos and smoking together amplify lung cancer risk. Most trusts compensate smokers if asbestos exposure contributed to the disease, even minimally.
If you smoked and have an asbestos-related illness, your claim is still valid. We’ll ensure your diagnosis is properly documented and advocate for your right to compensation, regardless of smoking history.
Exposure to a Covered Product or Worksite
Asbestos trust claims require proof of exposure to specific asbestos-containing products or worksites covered by the trust. You don’t need to recall exact brand names or companies—we’ll handle the investigation. Additionally, claims aren’t limited to workers; secondhand exposure, such as through family members, is also compensable. We use several different types of evidence to prove our clients' exposure:
Employment Records: Social Security and union records to confirm job history.
Worksite Documentation: Job site manifests, product catalogs, shipping logs, and sales invoices to link asbestos products to your workplace.
Witness Testimony: Affidavits, including your coworkers or your own, to detail exposure.
Legal Evidence: Depositions from prior lawsuits, such as Clarence Borel’s 1970 deposition, which we’ve used to support claims tied to products like Kaylo.
You don’t need direct workplace exposure to file a claim, though. Spouses, children, and even grandchildren exposed secondhand—through activities like washing a worker’s asbestos-covered clothes, sharing a home, or embracing a loved one returning from an industrial job site—can qualify. These claims are valid, fully compensable, and have secured compensation for many families affected by asbestos-related diseases.
Exposure During the Covered Timeframe
To qualify for most asbestos trust claims, your exposure must have occurred before a specific cutoff date—typically 1982 or 1986, depending on the trust. These dates aren’t arbitrary. They mark a point in time when the dangers of asbestos became widely known to the public, shifting how courts view legal responsibility.
Before the early 1980s, asbestos manufacturers routinely failed to warn workers about the health risks of their products—even though internal documents showed they understood the danger. Workers were exposed without adequate protection or information. Groundbreaking lawsuits like Borel v. Fibreboard established that manufacturers had a duty to warn—and many had knowingly violated that duty.
But by the mid-1980s, this dynamic had shifted. Court rulings, OSHA and EPA regulations, and major media coverage had turned asbestos into a national health scandal. One of the most pivotal moments came in 1982, when Johns-Manville—the largest asbestos manufacturer in the U.S.—filed for bankruptcy under the weight of mounting asbestos lawsuits. At the time, it was the largest corporate bankruptcy in American history and dominated front pages for months. The public learned not only that asbestos was deadly, but that the companies involved had hidden the truth.
The JM bankruptcy was, in effect, the asbestos equivalent of the 1964 Surgeon General’s Report on Smoking and Health. Just as anyone who lived through the 1960s understood that smoking causes cancer, anyone who lived through the early 1980s knew that asbestos was deadly—and that companies like Johns-Manville had been held accountable. After that point, courts began to treat asbestos exposure as a “known risk,” weakening legal claims based on a failure to warn.
That’s why most asbestos trusts only cover exposure that occurred before 1982 or 1986. The trusts were designed to compensate people who were harmed before the danger was public knowledge—when warnings could have made a difference. After those cutoff dates, courts generally assume workers knew the risks and could have taken steps to protect themselves.
Example: Clarence Borel’s Exposure to Kaylo
Clarence Borel’s case illustrates this principle clearly:
In 1949, Borel began working with Kaylo, an asbestos insulation made by Owens-Corning. He was never warned of the risks and used no protection. Over time, he developed asbestosis and then mesothelioma. His 1973 lawsuit showed that Owens-Corning and others knew the risks and failed to warn. The court held them liable.
Imagine it’s 1985, and a worker is assigned to remove Kaylo insulation that Borel installed in the 60's. By 1985 asbestos dangers had been widely publicized—through landmark lawsuits (like Borel's), EPA warnings, and months of front-page coverage following the Johns-Manville bankruptcy. If that worker chose to handle asbestos materials without protection, a court might find that he knew or should have known the risks. In that scenario, any claim against the manufacturer could fail, because the legal system no longer treats the danger as a hidden or undisclosed hazard.
That’s the logic behind the cutoff dates. Trusts exist to help people who didn't know the dangers of asbestos, like Borel.
Sufficient Duration and Intensity of Exposure
For most cancer claims other than mesothelioma—like lung, colon, stomach, or throat cancer—asbestos trusts require two additional things:
At least five years of asbestos exposure, and
Two years of Significant Occupational Exposure (SOE)
SOE means that the person was regularly in environments where asbestos dust was released into the air—whether by working directly with asbestos materials or alongside others who did. It's not enough that asbestos was present; what matters is whether the person breathed it in during the course of their work.
Why do the trusts require this? Because medical research shows that diseases like lung or colon cancer are generally caused by long-term, high-level exposure to asbestos. The SOE rule helps the trusts ensure that the exposure was serious enough to have contributed to the illness.
Remember, even just a day or two of exposure is enough for a person with mesothelioma to qualify. There is no need to prove significant exposure to asbestos because the research is clear: Even a brief exposure can cause mesothelioma.
Our firm has the tools and expertise to prove that your exposure was significant:
Social Security and employment records
Co-worker or supervisor affidavits
Job site documentation and product catalogs
Union records, work logs, and historical manuals
We don’t just show where you worked—we show how you were exposed, so your claim meets trust standards.
Why You May Qualify for Multiple Asbestos Trust Claims
Asbestos exposure typically involved multiple products from different manufacturers at a single job site, making most claimants eligible for compensation from several asbestos trust funds. Each trust represents a bankrupt company responsible for specific asbestos-containing products, such as insulation, gaskets, or cement, and pays only for the harm its products caused. Filing with just one trust rarely captures the full scope of exposure, so we pursue claims against all relevant trusts to maximize your compensation.
The Multi-Trust Reality: A Modern Example Inspired by Clarence Borel
Consider a worker like Clarence Borel, the Texas insulator whose 1969 lawsuit against 12 asbestos companies pioneered product liability claims. Diagnosed with mesothelioma after decades of exposure, Borel proved he handled products from multiple manufacturers—Johns-Manville, Eagle-Picher, Fibreboard, Pittsburgh Corning, Owens-Corning, and others—across various worksites. His 1973 victory held these companies accountable and reshaped asbestos litigation.
If Borel filed today in 2025, the process would be streamlined through asbestos trust funds, with no courtroom battle required. Here’s how we’d approach his case:
Trace Exposure Sources: Using Social Security records, union logs, site manifests, and product catalogs, we’d confirm Borel’s exposure to specific products, like Johns-Manville pipe insulation, Pittsburgh Corning block insulation, W.R. Grace cement, or Garlock gaskets, at each job site.
File Multiple Claims: We’d submit claims to each company’s bankruptcy trust—potentially 15, 20, or 30 trusts—reflecting every product contributing to his mesothelioma. Each trust would pay its share, often six figures per claim for mesothelioma, totaling hundreds of thousands or more.
Simplify the Process: Borel wouldn’t testify, face a jury, or fight alone. We’d handle all documentation, ensuring every trust compensates for its role in his exposure. Many of our clients have only had to meet with us one time - we do the rest while they recover.
Explain every legal option: Today, a person in Clarence Borel's situation would have multiple options for additional compensation, including lawsuits and disability claims.
Each manufacturer’s trust compensates only for its products’ harm, so filing with all relevant trusts ensures full accountability. Most of our clients file multiple claims to reflect the complex reality of their exposure, just as Borel’s case showed in 1969.
📞 Call 833-4-ASBESTOS or contact us online for a free, no-obligation consultation. We’ll build your claims, piece by piece, to hold every responsible company accountable—without the courtroom struggle Clarence Borel faced.
How Much Do Asbestos Trusts Pay?
Many people don’t realize just how valuable asbestos trust claims can be.
Because most workers were exposed to multiple asbestos products—across different jobs, worksites, and manufacturers—they often qualify for multiple trust funds. And while individual payments may seem modest, together they can add up to hundreds of thousands of dollars—or more.
At our firm, we’ve helped clients qualify for 20, 30, or even more trusts, especially in mesothelioma cases. These payments are awarded without going to court, without testifying, and without ever facing a corporate lawyer.
But how much a trust pays—and how much it has—are two different things.
How Much a Trust Pays is Based Upon How Much Money the Trust Has
Each asbestos trust is funded based on how big the original company was and how much insurance coverage or assets it had when it went bankrupt.
A massive company like Pittsburgh Corning, which made insulation used across thousands of worksites, funded its trust with billions of dollars.
Smaller companies, like regional contractors or niche product manufacturers, may have only been able to contribute a few million.
But when it comes to how much each trust pays out, the key factor is what the company used to pay in lawsuits before it filed for bankruptcy.
This is known as the scheduled value. It reflects the company’s historical settlement amounts—essentially, what they were paying people with similar illnesses in court.
Scheduled Value vs. Actual Payout
Each trust assigns a scheduled value to qualifying diseases like mesothelioma, lung cancer, and asbestosis. But trusts rarely pay 100% of that amount. To ensure money remains available for future claimants, they pay only a percentage of the scheduled value—known as the payment percentage.
These percentages vary by trust and range from as high as 60% to as low as 1%, depending on the trust’s funding level, expected claims volume, and court-approved financial plan.
Example:
The Johns-Manville Trust assigns a scheduled value of $350,000 for a mesothelioma claim.
That means that Johns-Manville typically paid $350,000 to settle a mesothelioma lawsuit.
Its current payment percentage is about 5.1%
Payment percentages are approved by court-appointed trustees based upon actuarial analysis of claim trends.
That means a claimant would receive a $17,850 settlement from that trust.
These payment percentages aren’t arbitrary. Federal bankruptcy courts oversee each trust, and independent actuaries are tasked with ensuring the money lasts. They study expected future claims, review disease incidence trends, and recommend payment percentages that will keep the trust solvent for decades—not just for today’s claimants, but for those who will be diagnosed years from now.
For example, the Johns-Manville Trust was funded with $2 billion when it was established in the early 1980's. Since then, it has paid out over $5 billion to asbestos victims across the country. Without payment percentages, it—and most other trusts—would have been drained within a year or two of opening. There would be nothing left for the workers and families still being diagnosed today.
And remember: filing trust claims does not prevent you from pursuing other compensation—like lawsuits, workers’ comp, or disability benefits. In fact, most of our clients receive trust settlements as just one part of a larger compensation strategy.
Can Some Trusts Pay More Than the Standard Amount?
Yes—many asbestos trusts have a process called Individual Review (IR), which allows claims to be evaluated for above-average compensation based on unique factors in your case. Unlike expedited claims that pay a fixed percentage of the scheduled value, IR considers additional details like your specific diagnosis, level of disability, financial losses, number of dependents, and the intensity of your asbestos exposure.
In the right cases, Individual Review can result in significantly higher payouts—but it can also result in a lower payout. It also adds several months to the review process. We only pursue IR for clients when we believe it offers a real benefit based on the facts of their case.
How Much Can You Receive in Total?
Every case is different—but we can say this with confidence:
Mesothelioma trust claims frequently result in six-figure individual trust settlements that can result in a total recovery in excess of $1 million dollars
Asbestosis and lung cancer claims are valued much lower than mesothelioma but still can be significant
Secondary exposure claims are also compensable—and often qualify for many of the same trusts
For a deeper breakdown of real-world trust values and a sample payout chart, visit our Asbestos Trust Settlement Amounts page.
Which Companies Have Asbestos Trusts?
Today, there are about 50 active asbestos bankruptcy trusts. These were set up by companies that manufactured or sold asbestos-containing products—and later filed for bankruptcy after being held liable in court.
Some of the most well-known trusts were created by:
Johns-Manville
Owens Corning
W.R. Grace
Pittsburgh Corning
Armstrong World Industries
These companies produced materials like pipe insulation, cement, gaskets, and fireproofing—without warning the people who used them. When the lawsuits started piling up, they filed for bankruptcy. But under court orders, they had to fund trusts to compensate their victims.
Click here to see the full list of active asbestos trusts.
Trust Claims Are Just One Piece of the Puzzle
Asbestos trust funds are an essential part of how victims are compensated today. But they’re only one piece of a much bigger puzzle.
Many companies that caused asbestos exposure are still operating. They didn’t file for bankruptcy—and they can still be held accountable through lawsuits.
Workers may also qualify for workers’ compensation, Social Security Disability, and other financial support. With the right legal strategy, you can pursue multiple paths at the same time—without letting one interfere with another.
To show how this works in the real world, let’s take the man who changed everything:
Hypothetical: What If Someone With Clarence Borel's Exposure Filed Asbestos Trust Claims Today?
In 1969, Clarence Borel became the first person to successfully sue asbestos manufacturers for causing mesothelioma. He was a Texas insulation worker—a quiet man who had spent decades installing and handling asbestos products.
He sued twelve companies. The evidence showed he had been exposed to their products—Kaylo, Limpet, Unibestos, and more—at worksites across the Gulf Coast. Eleven of the twelve companies were found liable.
Borel didn’t want to sue. But when he learned those companies knew their products were deadly and said nothing, he took them to court—not just for himself, but for every other worker like him.
So what if someone like Clarence Borel walked into our office today?
Here’s what we’d do:
We’d file asbestos trust claims with each of the eleven companies that lost to him in court—companies like Johns-Manville, Owens Corning, Eagle-Picher, Fibreboard, and Pittsburgh Corning. Each of those companies now has a bankruptcy trust. He’d be entitled to compensation from each one.
We’d sue the refineries and industrial facilities where he worked under premises liability, since many of those facilities are still operating or have successor companies.
We’d confirm and file his workers’ compensation claim. In fact, Clarence Borel did file a comp claim after his diagnosis—and he would still be eligible today.
We’d help him apply for full Social Security Disability. With a mesothelioma diagnosis, he would qualify for 100% SSDI benefits, fast-tracked under compassionate allowance rules.
If he remembered other solvent manufacturers who made asbestos products—companies still in business today—we’d file product liability lawsuits against them too.
The result? Clarence Borel would receive trust payouts, workers’ comp, SSDI, and possibly significant lawsuit settlements or verdicts. And he wouldn’t need to change the legal system to do it.
He wouldn’t need to testify.
He wouldn’t need to sit through a trial.
His family wouldn’t face a jury.
But every company would still be held accountable. Just like they were in 1973.
Why You Need a Coordinated Legal Strategy
Each type of compensation—trust claims, lawsuits, workers’ comp, SSDI—has different rules, timelines, and paperwork. But with the right legal team, they can be pursued together, carefully and strategically.
Our firm builds multi-claim strategies that:
Identify every form of compensation you qualify for
Make sure trust claims don’t conflict with lawsuits or workers’ comp
Coordinate timelines to maximize your total recovery
Handle all the paperwork and evidence-gathering—so you don’t have to
Ready to Take the First Step?
Whether you’re a worker, a spouse, or a family member—if asbestos touched your life, you deserve justice.
You don’t need to remember product names. You don’t need to prove anything on your own. You just need someone who knows where to look—and how to fight.
At our firm, we’ve helped thousands of families file trust claims, win lawsuits, recover workers’ comp, and access SSDI. We’ll build a personalized strategy for you—and walk with you every step of the way.
📞 Call 833-4-ASBESTOS or contact us online for a free, no-pressure consultation.
There’s no cost to talk to us, and no fee unless we win for you.