Asbestos Trusts Subpoenaed
A bankruptcy hearing that begins on Monday will focus on the dozens of asbestos bankruptcy trusts established to facilitate asbestos-related payments. According to the Wall Street Journal, Garlock Sealing Technologies says that it is being sued for injuries that plaintiffs’ lawyers already filed claims for elsewhere:
The company hopes to limit liability by showing federal bankruptcy judge George Hodges that plaintiffs who filed suits solely blaming Garlock for their asbestos illness—and in some cases extracting large settlements from Garlock—went on to blame other companies, too.
To bolster its case, Garlock has successfully subpoenaed details about plaintiffs’ claims to numerous bankruptcy trusts set up by companies that also made asbestos products and went bankrupt when inundated with lawsuits.
