Owens Corning Asbestos Settlement

As further evidence that the stalled Senate Asbestos Bill is unlikely to ever pass Owens Corning announced a $5.2 Billion asbestos settlement today.

This article from Bloomberg has the details.

The article includes the following regarding the possibility of more companies reaching settlements:

"The fact that this has settled and it's so big and so complex has sent a signal to everybody that settlements are going to happen more quickly,'' said Charles Tatelbaum, a lawyer with Ft. Lauderdale, Florida's Adorno & Yoss. Tatelbaum, a former vice president of research for the American Bankruptcy Institute, has represented creditors in asbestos-related cases in the past.

"The view is now that Congress isn't going to do anything, so they're settling,'' Tatelbaum said about the federal bill proposing an asbestos fund.

"I think what we're going to see is a considerable number of bankruptcies resolve in the next year or so,'' said Mark Lanier, of the Lanier Law Firm in Houston, who represents asbestos claimants including those against Owens Corning. "I'm an optimist that the system is working.''