Johns-Manville Board of Directors Minutes on Asbestos Litigation (1979)

Excerpts from the minutes of seven Johns-Manville board meetings in 1979 (March 2, April 6, May 3, June 1, June 29, August 2 and December 7), copied for the passages on asbestos. Chairman John A. McKinney reported on his efforts to win "a legislative solution" to the company's asbestos liability, on press coverage and Congressional hearings, and, on June 1, that a class action had been filed "alleging misleading statements in recent SEC filings concerning the financial impact of asbestos health litigation." On August 2 the Legal Department gave the board "a detailed review" of the asbestos litigation.

What it shows

The minutes follow the year in which J-M turned to Congress. On March 2 McKinney reviewed the allegations in plaintiffs' pleadings that had been repeated in the media, and "stated the Company position that we will oppose any effort to have industry pay for the contributions of government and medical science to the development of asbestos-related disease." On allegations "of a conspiracy to cover up knowledge of asbestos-related disease," he reviewed the company's studies and their publication.

On April 6 he reported a defense verdict in a third-party asbestos case in Cleveland, Ohio, and a bill to have school ceilings tested. On May 3 he reported "favorable reaction" from employees, customers and others to the asbestos section of the annual report, and described a telex the company sent to Congressman George Miller of California after hearings at which Miller made statements "against the Asbestos Industry, Johns-Manville and John McKinney."

On June 1 the board heard of the shareholder class action over the company's SEC filings (the suit disclosed in the S-7 amendment of May 1979). On June 29 and again on December 7 McKinney reported that Senator Hart planned to introduce an asbestos compensation bill; in December, "It is expected that the Construction Trades Union will support this Bill."

On August 2, at a meeting in Saratoga, Wyoming, G. E. Parker, R. B. VonWald and D. H. Markusson of the Legal Department reported on legal proceedings, "including a detailed review of the current status of the Company's asbestos health litigation," and J. S. Autry reviewed the company's work on compensation legislation. The charts shown that day are the Legal Department presentation of August 2, 1979.