Lawsuits are not much fun for either party. They can also consume a lot of money, time and energy. If you are suffering from the effects of asbestos exposure, those are three things you might not have much of. You might also hate the thought of taking your old employer who you were fond of to court.
This is where an asbestos trust fund comes in. It can save you money, time and energy and avoid the need to go to court.
The government long ago worked out that the potential for asbestos-related lawsuits against certain employers was massive. The obvious outcome, if they did nothing, was that the employer would have to file for bankruptcy after the first payout or first few payouts leaving any future claimants without recourse for compensation for their injuries.
Not only would that be unfair to those employees who had suffered, but it would also deprive the country of some important businesses.
The government also worked out that some less honorable employers would just file for bankruptcy in order to escape their responsibilities.
Hence they came up with the idea of trust funds
It obligated companies who wanted to declare Chapter 11 bankruptcy due to asbestos lawsuits to pay money into a trust fund that could be used to compensate future claimants. The benefit to the companies was they would be able to continue trading, secure in the knowledge they would not be hit by asbestos-related lawsuits.
The benefit to you, as someone who needs to claim compensation, is that you can hopefully get some money faster and with much less stress than going to court. You also don’t need to risk all your possessions in the process which you could do if you had to go to court and lost.
There is help available to learn more if you need to claim for an asbestos-related illness.
