The asbestos bankruptcy trust funds currently hold more than $30 billion in funds set aside specifically to compensate workers and their families for asbestos-related disease. For sheet metal workers, the trusts reachable trace both to the asbestos duct-liner, cloth connectors, and gaskets on the ductwork the trade built, and to the asbestos pipe covering and boiler insulation in the mechanical rooms where the trade installed that ductwork.
Trust funds relevant to sheet metal-worker exposure
| Trust Fund | How sheet metal workers were exposed |
|---|---|
| Manville Personal Injury Settlement Trust | Johns-Manville duct-adjacent pipe covering, transite panels, and insulation in mechanical rooms |
| Owens-Corning / Fibreboard Asbestos PI Trust | Kaylo pipe covering and block insulation on the steam mains beside the ductwork |
| Pittsburgh Corning Asbestos PI Trust | Unibestos amosite pipe covering |
| Eagle-Picher Industries PI Settlement Trust | Block insulation, pipe covering |
| Armstrong World Industries Asbestos PI Trust | Calcium silicate insulation |
| Babcock & Wilcox Asbestos PI Trust | Industrial boilers whose breeching and stacks sheet metal workers fabricated and connected |
| Combustion Engineering 524(g) Asbestos PI Trust | Industrial boiler manufacturer |
| Celotex Asbestos Settlement Trust | Celotex pipe insulation |
| Keene Creditors Trust | Keene insulation products |
| W.R. Grace Asbestos PI Settlement Trust | Monokote sprayed fireproofing in the plenums and shafts where the trade ran duct |
| A.P. Green Industries Asbestos PI Trust | Refractory products |
| Dresser/Harbison-Walker Asbestos Trust | Refractory brick and castable |
How trust-fund claims work
Asbestos bankruptcy trust claims and civil lawsuits run on separate tracks — both can be pursued in parallel. Each trust has its own filing requirements, exposure-documentation criteria, occupation/jobsite verification process, and payout schedule. A career sheet metal worker may have legitimate claims against multiple separate trusts.
The trust claim process is significantly faster than civil litigation in most cases. Trust payouts are based on a published value matrix that takes into account the disease, the exposure documentation, and the claim type. An experienced asbestos attorney can analyze which trusts apply, file simultaneously, and aggregate the recoveries on the client’s behalf.
Where to start
Identify the products you handled, the jobsites you worked, the dates of your apprenticeship and journeyman years, and your Local number. From there, the O’Brien Law Firm intake team can analyze which trusts and civil actions apply.
Free case review — (314) 237-3332
Trust fund administration and payout schedules are determined by each trust’s 524(g) plan. Information here is summary only; specific trust eligibility requires individual analysis under each trust’s published claim criteria.