February 26, 2011
New $307 million settlement trust created for mesothelioma claims
Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas-based Cooper Industries will pay approximately $307 million into a settlement trust to help cover asbestos-related personal injury claims. This agreement resolves a July 2010 lawsuit filed by the Pneumo Abex company challenging a joint venture between Cooper and manufacturer Danaher to fulfill asbestos-related personal injury claim obligations.
Asbestos is a highly toxic mineral that was used prominently in construction and manufacturing throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. Its use was banned in the United States in the late 1980's for causing such fatal respiratory diseases as asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma, a rare cancer of the protective lining of the lungs, heart, chest and abdomen.
Cooper, which manufactures electrical products, will invest the $307 million in a trust with Pneumo Abex. In turn, Pneumo Abex and one of its affiliates will pay an additional $5 million into the trust. Cooper will also pay Pneumo Abex $15 million to continue resolving any additional asbestos-related claims.
Many asbestos claims are filed by workers who were exposed to the carcinogen at work. As a result, 20 to 50 years later they develop lung cancer or mesothelioma, the latter of which is almost exclusively caused by prolonged asbestos exposure. This aggressive yet silent killer usually doesn't become symptomatic until it reaches stage three or four, at which point it is incurable even when treatment is received.
Mesothelioma patients only live an average of six months past diagnosis. Therefore, it is usually the victim's family that hires a mesothelioma attorney and files the claim. Pneumo Abex has been named in several lawsuits alleging asbestos-related deaths.
