Asbestos 101, Part 5: Asbestos Claims, Trusts, and Compensation Options

A diagnosis from asbestos exposure can leave people with urgent questions: What compensation options are available? What is an asbestos trust claim? Can someone file a lawsuit? What happens if the exposure happened at work, in the military, or decades ago?

In Part 5 of Asbestos 101, asbestos attorney Justinian Lane explains the major legal and financial options that may be available to people diagnosed with asbestos-related diseases, including mesothelioma, lung cancer, and asbestosis. This episode covers asbestos bankruptcy trust claims, civil lawsuits, product liability cases, premises liability claims, FELA and Jones Act claims, workers’ compensation, Social Security Disability, and VA disability claims.

Justinian also explains important legal concepts that often come up in asbestos cases, including statutes of limitations, statutes of repose, occupational exposure, non-occupational exposure, compensatory damages, punitive damages, contingency fees, Medicare reimbursement, wills, probate, and how asbestos claims may continue after someone passes away.

This episode also looks at how asbestos bankruptcy trusts work, why companies like Johns Manville created trusts, how payment percentages affect claim values, and why trust claims are different from lawsuits. It also covers the historic Borel case and how product liability law helped shape modern asbestos litigation.

Learn more about asbestos exposure, asbestos-related diseases, mesothelioma claims, asbestos claims, asbestos trust claims, and compensation options at asbestosclaims.law.

0:00 Introduction
0:39 Asbestos bankruptcy trust claims
0:55 Civil lawsuits and asbestos compensation
1:06 Product liability and premises liability claims
1:27 FELA and Jones Act claims
1:45 Workers’ compensation, Social Security, and VA claims
2:39 Statutes of limitations
4:00 The discovery rule and when to contact an attorney
6:29 Occupational asbestos exposure
8:12 Types of damages in asbestos lawsuits
9:06 Punitive damages explained
11:28 How asbestos bankruptcy trusts work
12:59 How asbestos trusts are created and funded
14:59 Trust distribution procedures and payment percentages
17:18 Johns Manville trust payment history
20:00 Why asbestos trusts pay percentages of claims
23:10 Civil lawsuits compared with trust claims
25:00 Johns Manville bankruptcy and failure-to-warn claims
27:59 The Borel case and asbestos product liability
30:00 Section 402A and defective product claims
33:19 Occupational disease lawsuits and asbestos exposure
37:19 Compensation for families and loss of consortium
39:20 FELA and Jones Act asbestos claims
41:59 Workers’ compensation for asbestos exposure
43:11 VA disability claims for asbestos-related illness
44:59 Social Security Disability and SSI
47:30 Lawsuits, trust claims, and Medicare reimbursement
49:59 Wills, probate, and asbestos claims after death