GARLOCK
Examples of the abuse
Recent court proceedings in North Carolina have helped reveal the degree of fraud and abuse in asbestos litigation and trust claims.
To help estimate the future trust liability of gasket maker Garlock Sealing Technologies, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge George Hodges allowed a review of 15 prior lawsuits against the company, which revealed evidence was improperly withheld in every suit.
Hodges observed that Garlock’s prior lawsuits were “infected by the manipulation of exposure evidence.” He found that plaintiff lawyers were hiding evidence, coaching clients on what to say, and failing to disclose claims made in other cases.
After denying he had ever seen anyone remove pipe insulation, a former electronics technician received $450,000 from Garlock. Then he filed claims with seven other trusts, stating he had personally removed insulation and identifying the products by name.
Based upon Garlock’s litigation history, plaintiff attorneys estimated its present and future liability to be $1.4 billion. However, having learned the estimate was inflated by a history of deceitful litigation, Hodges ruled that Garlock was only liable for $125 million – less than nine percent of the plaintiff lawyers’ estimate.
On December 4, 2014, Judge Hodges ruled against the plaintiffs’ committee motion to reopen the liability estimate process, holding to his $125 million ruling.
This ongoing case may help expose – and help stem – the rampant fraud and abuse in asbestos claims.
