JEFFERSON CITY – Associated Industries of Missouri President and CEO Ray McCarty is hopeful that the asbestos transparency bill recently passed in the Missouri House of Representatives will ultimately usher in a system of fair and equitable treatment for companies charged with exposing residents to the harmful mineral.
Sponsored by Rep. Bruce DeGroot (R-Chesterfield), House Bill 1645 would provide greater transparency about the award amounts allotted to victims and the bankruptcy trusts set up to aid them. The measure was recently overwhelmingly approved in the House of Representatives and has now moved on to the Senate.
“Associated Industries of Missouri is fully supportive of the asbestos transparency legislation,” McCarty told the St. Louis Record. “Asbestos trusts were established by asbestos producers, many of which are now bankrupt. The purpose of these trust funds is to pay claims to people that were harmed by asbestos exposure. We believe litigants that have a claim against one of the asbestos trust funds should seek remedy from those funds first before pursuing a lawsuit against another party.”
Rep. Bruce DeGroot
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McCarty said to allow any system to operate is to invite the kinds of imbalances that now plague the system, including the astronomical award sums that have recently been awarded to victims through the court system in recent years.
“The current system allows a plaintiff to file a civil suit against a business that is currently in business, get a settlement or judgment against that entity, then file a claim against a trust, resulting in double-dipping,” he said. "These trust claims are very easy to obtain. The judge and/or jury don't know the plaintiff is eligible for a payment from the trust fund and there is no requirement that the plaintiff make a claim against a trust fund before proceeding.”
Critics of DeGroot’s proposal have countered it muddles the process of those seeking compensation from companies responsible for exposing them to the life-threatening carcinogen.
With a dozen other states already with similar laws on the books, McCarty said he is hopeful the measure will pass in Missouri sometime this legislative session.
The 12 other states already with similar laws on the books include Ohio, Iowa, West Virginia, Texas, Arizona, Tennessee, North Dakota, South Dakota, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Mississippi and Utah, McCarty noted.