Courts & Congress Can Uncover Asbestos Sham

A Wall Street Journal editorial highlights super plaintiffs’ lawyer and Baltimore Orioles owner Peter Angelos’ use of his team doctor to screen asbestos clients and his latest attempt to consolidate 13,000 asbestos claims. The editorial also highlights the FACT Act as a remedy to help shine a light on the opaque asbestos trusts to prevent “double dipping” of both trust claims and lawsuits against solvent defendants. An analysis of the Angelos cases found 1,500 claimants have already filed with a bankruptcy trust and 70% of the remainders were diagnosed by a group of five doctors, raising concerns of “bogus suits manufactured with the help of friendly doctors.”