Asbestos Trust Funds for Illinois Workers

Illinois workers were exposed to asbestos products manufactured by dozens of companies across the steel, railroad, manufacturing, and construction industries. Many of those companies are now bankrupt, and in bankruptcy, they established trust funds specifically to compensate people with mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases.

These trusts still hold more than $30 billion. They accept new claims and pay qualifying claimants on a rolling basis. For Illinois workers who were exposed at the state’s 670 documented exposure sites, the trusts represent a significant source of compensation that operates independently of lawsuits.

How Trust Funds Work

When asbestos manufacturers filed for bankruptcy, courts required them to establish trusts funded by company assets to compensate current and future claimants. Each trust has its own set of:

• Payment percentages, the share of the scheduled value that the trust currently pays (to preserve funds for future claimants)
• Disease categories, mesothelioma typically qualifies for the highest payment tier
• Exposure criteria, documentation of when and where the claimant was exposed to the company’s products
• Filing procedures, forms, medical records, and supporting documentation

Because most Illinois workers were exposed to products from multiple manufacturers, a single person with mesothelioma often qualifies for claims with five to 15 different trusts.

Trusts Most Relevant to Illinois Workers

This is not a complete list. More than 60 trusts are currently active, and an experienced mesothelioma attorney can identify every trust that applies to a specific worker’s exposure history.

The W.R. Grace Connection

The W.R. Grace trust is particularly relevant for Illinois workers. Grace’s Zonolite division processed contaminated vermiculite from the Libby, Montana mine at facilities across Illinois. A single Chicago plant processed 273,000 tons of tremolite-contaminated vermiculite, with additional sites in Girard, Peoria, Quincy, Buda, and Calumet City.

Workers at these facilities, and in some cases residents living nearby, were exposed to tremolite asbestos fibers during vermiculite processing operations. The W.R. Grace trust pays claims from people who can document exposure to Zonolite products or proximity to Grace processing facilities.

Filing Process

Trust fund claims follow a standard process, though each trust has its own requirements:

1. Diagnosis documentation, pathology reports confirming mesothelioma
2. Exposure evidence, work history placing the claimant at a site where the trust’s products were used
3. Claim submission, forms filed with each applicable trust
4. Review and payment, trusts review claims and issue payments, typically within three to 12 months

Trust Claims and Other Compensation

Trust fund claims are independent of other compensation sources. Filing a trust claim does not reduce, offset, or affect:

• Lawsuit settlements or verdicts, Cook County juries have delivered awards exceeding $40 million in recent mesothelioma cases
• VA disability benefits, veterans exposed to asbestos during military service can receive both trust fund compensation and VA benefits
• Workers’ compensation, state workers’ comp claims proceed separately

Most families pursue all applicable sources simultaneously, with an attorney coordinating the filings to maximize total recovery.

Why an Attorney Matters

Trust fund claims are administrative, not judicial, but they still require:

• Product identification, connecting the worker’s jobsites to specific products made by each trust’s predecessor company
• Documentation, compiling employment records, union records, co-worker statements, and medical records
• Filing strategy, knowing which trusts to file with, in what order, and how to present the strongest claim

Attorneys who handle mesothelioma cases maintain databases of asbestos products, manufacturers, and the jobsites where those products were used. This knowledge is particularly important for Illinois cases, where exposure often occurred at large industrial facilities that used products from dozens of different manufacturers.