Asbestos Bankruptcy Trust for Keene Corporation
Keene CorporationKeene Creditors Trust
Filed 1996
An asbestos bankruptcy trust was filed for in 1996 for Keene Corporation, under the name Keene Creditors Trust. Asbestos bankruptcy trusts are typically set up so that people who become victims of asbestos exposure can potentially obtain financial compensation for any illness incurred as a result of such exposure, including mesothelioma.
Exposure to asbestos can lead to a number of serious illnesses including mesothelioma, a malignant form of cancer. The survival rate for mesothelioma is extremely low because symptoms do not begin to appear until 30 to 40 years after inhalation of asbestos fibers has occurred. By the point of diagnosis, the disease has reached its later and nearly incurable stages.
As people became aware of the dangers of asbestos and mesothelioma diagnoses became more prevalent, people began hiring asbestos lawyers and suing the companies responsible for their illnesses. As the number of these lawsuits increased, it became necessary for the manufacturers and distributors of asbestos products to file for bankruptcy and reorganize their debts in a way that would allow them to pay off their liabilities. Part of this process involved setting up trusts to settle the claims.
The Keene Corporation, through the main entity and its subsidiaries, manufactured products such as heat-sealed plastic packaging, microcircuits, industrial bearings, and fireproofing material. Through two of its subsidiaries, Keene Building Products Corporation and Baldwin-Ehret-Hill Company, it manufactured and sold thermal insulation and acoustical products containing asbestos. Beginning in the 1970s, Keene faced lawsuits from plaintiffs alleging injury or death from exposure to asbestos fibers. Facing over 100,000 claims, the company filed for protection under Chapter 11 of the US Bankruptcy Code in December 1993.
Keene emerged from bankruptcy in 1996 when the courts approved its reorganization plan. Part of the reorganization plan included the establishment of a trust. The Keene Creditors Trust, formed using 100% shareholder equity, would compensate the victims of asbestos exposure filing claims against the company.
For more information on this Asbestos Bankruptcy Trust, visit the Trust web site at http://www.cpf-inc.com/Keene_instructions_temp.aspxContact the asbestos lawyers at Clapper, Patti Schweizer & Mason for more information on the bankruptcy trust for Keene Corporation, or if you have any other questions regarding mesothelioma.