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. Many of the trusts were funded by manufacturers whose products were the daily materials of the pipe trades — gaskets, valve packing, and the boilers and pressure vessels UA members piped into — plus the pipe covering they cut, tied into, and removed during turnaround and repair work.
Trust funds most directly applicable to pipefitter/steamfitter work
| Trust Fund | Products the trade allegedly handled |
|---|---|
| Garlock Sealing Technologies Asbestos PI Trust | Flange gaskets and valve/pump packing — the trade’s most direct, daily exposure |
| Babcock & Wilcox Asbestos PI Trust | Industrial boiler manufacturer — pipefitters piped and maintained B&W boilers extensively |
| Combustion Engineering 524(g) Asbestos PI Trust | Industrial boiler manufacturer |
| Manville Personal Injury Settlement Trust | Johns-Manville pipe covering, cut and tied into during installation and repair |
| Owens-Corning / Fibreboard Asbestos PI Trust | Kaylo pipe covering, calcium silicate block insulation |
| 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 |
| Celotex Asbestos Settlement Trust | Celotex pipe insulation |
| A.P. Green Industries Asbestos PI Trust | Refractory products — boiler and furnace linings |
| 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 pipefitter or steamfitter may have legitimate claims against 10-30 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.