Best Of The Best Share Discussion Threads

[waldron] 21/8/2005 16:00

ABB welcomes positive asbestos hearing, plan to be voted on by claimants

ZURICH (AFX) - ABB Ltd said it welcomed the "positive outcome" of Friday's
hearing on its reworked asbestos settlement plan, saying it "marks another step
forward towards resolving the asbestos issue."
On Friday a US bankruptcy court gave the Swiss/Swedish engineering group
permission to move forward with its 1.4 bln usd settlement plan.
The hearing opens the way for the next step - a vote by the claimants, ABB
said in a statement.
If the claimants approve it, the plan will go back to the court for
confirmation.
The confirmation hearing is set for Sept 29.
ABB's previous settlement plan was rejected by a US court last year. It then
revised the plan.
scs/ec

[waldron] 21/8/2005 08:23

ABB Says Court Decision Moves Asbestos Plan Toward Resolution
Aug. 20 (Bloomberg) -- ABB Ltd., the world's biggest maker of power transformers, said a U.S. court decision to allow claimants to vote on the company's revised asbestos plan moves the matter closer to resolution.

``It marks another step forward towards resolving the asbestos issue,'' the Zurich-based company said in an e-mailed statement sent out late yesterday. ``The court hearing opens the way for the next step, a vote by the claimants. If they approve it, the plan will go back to the court for confirmation.''

Judge Judith Fitzgerald of U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Pittsburgh yesterday approved a letter that explains the company's reworked plan to settle more than 135,000 asbestos claims. The court's confirmation hearing is scheduled for Sept. 29, ABB said.

The company has paid about $900 million since 1990 to settle thousands of asbestos claims against its U.S.-based units Lummus Global and Combustion Engineering. If settlement plans are approved, it will pay $1.4 billion to $1.5 billion more.

Roughly two-thirds of the creditors must vote for the plan before it can be considered by the court. The deadline for voting is Sept. 19.

Norwalk, Connecticut-based Combustion Engineering used asbestos to insulate boilers made until the 1960s. ABB, whose factory controls paint General Motors Corp.'s Hummer vehicles, purchased the company in 1990.

The use of asbestos as an insulator and for fireproofing, which was widespread in the U.S. until the 1970s, has been linked to respiratory illnesses and mesothelioma, a form of cancer.

[ariane] 20/7/2005 14:29

In asbestos case, plaintiffs' lawyers facing scrutiny of prosecutor
By Jonathan D. Glater The New York Times
THURSDAY, JULY 21, 2005


Plaintiffs' lawyers in the United States, long accustomed to public criticism and the wrath of lawmakers, now face a new and more dangerous adversary in federal prosecutors.

The latest evidence that the U.S. government may be increasingly willing to pursue these lawyers comes in the case of the bankruptcy of a company overwhelmed by asbestos claims. Recently filed court documents show that federal prosecutors in New York may have begun to investigate the conduct of three law firms.

The documents, which surfaced in the bankruptcy case of G-1 Holdings, formerly GAF, a manufacturer of roofing material, show that lawyers for G-1 have met with prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Manhattan in recent months.

The documents also show that the company's lawyers have turned over records of extensive interviews with former employees of the three plaintiffs' firms in which some employees described coaching potential claimants and noted efforts to influence doctors' diagnoses.

The investigation is potentially explosive because asbestos litigation has been an extremely costly problem for companies and a hugely profitable business for plaintiffs' lawyers.

About 730,000 people have filed claims for asbestos-related injuries, costing a total of $70 billion as of 2002, according to Rand, a nonprofit research organization, which estimates that a little less than a third of the total went to plaintiffs' lawyers. And since 1976, asbestos liability has contributed to the bankruptcy of more than 70 companies, including Bethlehem Steel, Owens Corning and W.R. Grace.

"Our system of justice depends on lawyers' processing cases and making representations that are based on their sound judgment about the facts," said Stephen Younger, a lawyer at Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler in New York. "As a result, if lawyers are charged with inflating or falsifying claims, it is a bad day for the legal profession."

The current criminal investigation is the latest example of a new willingness by prosecutors to look into the conduct of plaintiffs' lawyers. Last month, the U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles announced the first indictments related to a three-year-old investigation of Milberg Weiss Bershad & Schulman, a law firm known for its frequent shareholder class-action lawsuits.

Last month, Kroll investigators, after receiving a subpoena from prosecutors, turned over their findings; the subpoena suggests that prosecutors are interested in the asbestos claims. Lawyers say at least one insurance company has also received a subpoena.

G-1 was driven to seek Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2001 as a result of about 150,000 asbestos claims. The court filings, in which lawyers describe the activities that generated their bills, indicate that lawyers for G-1 have spoken or met with assistant U.S. prosecutors several times in recent months.

The U.S. Attorney's Office in Manhattan is also pursuing an investigation into thousands of claims filed on behalf of people who said they had been injured by exposure to silica, another dangerous material. Some of the same law firms that brought those claims also brought asbestos claims, some of the same doctors who diagnosed the silica claimants also diagnosed asbestos claimants, and many of the same people claiming they were hurt by silica previously claimed they were harmed by asbestos.

The criminal investigation could have broad implications for the civil justice system that compensates victims of personal injuries. If it proceeds to an actual case, it could also force some lawyers who file what are known as mass tort claims to change their tactics.

Defense lawyers, who have often been reluctant to take on plaintiffs' lawyers armed with thousands of claims in open legal battle, could be emboldened.

The investigation, raising the specter of fraud, will almost certainly be seized on by advocates of changes to the civil justice system. Lawyers who represent people who are sick as a result of asbestos exposure said they worried that any such changes might make it harder for legitimate asbestos victims to recover damages.

The spreading investigation could unleash a new wave of litigation over claims that were already paid. People who are genuinely sick, and who recovered less money than they might have if so much of the asbestos compensation funds had not been used to pay fraudulent claims, could sue the firms that filed those false claims.

[ariane] 08/7/2005 09:14

ZURICH (AFX) - ABB Ltd's first hearings on the revised chapter 11 plans for
its US subsidiaries Combustion Engineering and Lummus were "very positive" and
no substantial problems arose, an ABB spokesman said.
ABB said new questions concerning its revised asbestos settlement plan did
come up and that these will be addressed in time.
ABB said the second hearing has been scheduled for Aug 19 at which time the
disclosure statement will be discussed.
ckj/jc

[ariane] 30/6/2005 09:51

US Asbestos Legislation Seen Lapsing

Thursday, June 30, 2005 3:54:56 AM ET
Dow Jones Newswires



0735 GMT [Dow Jones] Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein analyst Darren Shaw sees "less than a 25% chance of success" in pushing through US asbestos legislation this year. The latest data is "not so bad," with actual number of new claims falling off, though still "not as good as having a ring fence." Has buy rating on Hanson (HAN, HNS.LN) and hold on St. Gobain (12500.FR), but warns no-one's going to acquire the former before asbestos risk lifts. Hanson -0.7% at 528p. (HET)

[shirishg] 23/6/2005 13:27

Post removed by ADVFN

[ariane] 23/6/2005 13:26

Hanson doubt on asbestos claims fund
Evening Standard
23 June 2005
BUILDING materials group Hanson warned that there was only a 50-50 chance of a groundbreaking US proposal for a $140bn (£76.8bn) compensation fund for asbestos victims ever becoming a reality.

Hanson spokesman Nick Swift delivered his verdict on the fund proposal, currently dragging its way through the US Senate, as the company confirmed it still expected asbestos claims against Hanson itself to cost $60 million a year for the next eight years.


In a trading update on the first half of this year, Hanson, headed by chief executive Alan Murray, said it supported Federal reform but 'believes the likelihood of success remains uncertain given the complexities involved and the political nature of the process through the Senate and the House of Representatives'.

The US Bill would limit the exposure of companies to lawsuits. The insurance industry is expected to contribute about $46bn to the $140bn fund.

Hanson expects asbestos claims against it to total about 139,250 at the 30 June half-year stage compared with 135,750 at the end of December.


Separately Hanson said today it had splashed out £100m for four American firms. It has also sold its half share of a Texas ready-mixed concrete business to a subsidiary of Heidelberg Cement.


Operating profits for the first half are expected to be 20% ahead of the first half of last year, when it made £165.6m.

[maywillow] 17/6/2005 09:13

Cape to set up fund for asbestos claims

Mark Milner
Friday June 17, 2005
The Guardian

Engineering services group Cape yesterday announced a £32m cash call on shareholders as part of its plans to set up a £40m fund to meet asbestos-related claims. It believes a separate fund offers greater security for company and claimants than paying settlements out of its profits, as it does at present.

Cape says compensation claims could total between £49.5m and £160m over the next 46 years, though it said the best estimate would be £80.9m. The claims are all in the UK as Cape has settled its liabilities in South Africa. In its rights issue announcement Cape noted that asbestos-related claims had already forced a number of firms into insolvency, leaving claimants with little chance of compensation.

Article continues


It said that if the cost of settling claims rose, Cape would be unlikely to be in a position to pay without outside funding. "It is possible that the directors would be faced with no alternative other than to realise the group's principal assets."

Chairman Martin May said the scheme provided "significant de-risking for Cape, removes a significant obstacle to growth and leaves the group better able to generate the resources needed to secure the continued payment of compensation to claimants".

Cape said it would put £22m from the rights issue into the scheme and add £3m from its own resources and £15m from increased borrowings. Some £7m from the cash call would be used to meet the costs of setting up the scheme and £3m to provide working capital.

Cape stressed that the fund would be ring-fenced in a separate entity which would have two independent directors representing the claimants on its board.

[maywillow] 13/6/2005 14:48

Hanson Rises On HeidelbergCement Bid

Monday, June 13, 2005 6:39:47 AM ET
Dow Jones Newswires



1027 GMT [Dow Jones] Hanson (HNS.LN, HAN) +1.9% at 532p after Spohn's offer for HeidelbergCement (HEI.XE) refocuses attention on sector, says Williams de Broe analyst Simon Brown. Move is a "sympathetic rise on back of further consolidation," in construction materials, he says, though Hanson's prospects for being taken over are for the moment limited by asbestos legislation uncertainty in US. Maintains at buy. (HET)

[maywillow] 07/6/2005 13:07

LONDON (AFX) - Equitas, the company set up to handle potentially crippling
asbestos and pollution-related claims against Lloyds insurers, said it finished
the year to March 31 2005 in a stronger financial position after settling some
of its liabilities.
Equitas said its solvency margin - surplus capital stated as a proportion of
outstanding claims - rose to 12.2 pct from 9.8 pct a year earlier.
The improvement partly reflected a reduction in claims liabilities to 4.4
bln stg from 5.4 bln, driven by settlement deals with 25 policyholders,
including three of the group's five largest asbestos claimants.
Equitas' finances were also boosted by an 11 pct cut in operating costs, and
by 133 mln stg in investment returns. Although down on the previous year's 395
mln stg, that exceeded the minimum estimated return needed to ensure that
capital is being generated quickly enough to meet all liabilities by 88 mln stg.
However, the group said it had set aside an extra 167 mln stg to cover
possible future asbestos liabilities after reassessing the full extent of its
asbestos exposure. Equitas' total asbestos reserves stand at about 2.3 bln stg.
"In the last year Equitas continued to make good progress," Equitas chief
executive Scott Moser said in a statement. "Nevertheless, we recognise that much
remains to be done and we are not relaxed about the challenges we face."
The precise extent of Equitas' liabilities is uncertain, as many of the
claims it faces relate to injuries resulting from exposure to asbestos or
industrial pollution, which can often take decades to emerge.
Equitas was set up in 1996 to take charge of all claims on Lloyds non-life
policies written before 1993. The creation of Equitas, funded by contributions
from Lloyds insurers, consolidated massive liabilities which had threatened to
bankrupt many market participants.
[e-mail]
mn/ma

[grupo] 04/6/2005 06:45

City comment
Edited by Neil Collins (Filed: 04/06/2005)




Harm that asbestos 'victims' inflict on others

Asbestos pays out $70bn
The asbestos injury industry is huge, and one of the fastest-growing in the west, but it has taken some careful work from the Rand Institute to reveal just how big, and how fast-growing. It's hard to know which is the more shocking: the $70billion cost of the story so far in America, or the finding that only 42 cents in every dollar spent by the companies reaches the successful claimants.

In truth, they are both pretty shocking. If anything, it seems that the number of claimants is accelerating, and it's likely that the total will reach a million in America alone.

Some of these cases are truly ghastly; mesothelioma is "a virulent form of cancer for which asbestos exposure is the only known cause" as the Rand report puts it. Yet these open-and-shut cases are a very small percentage of the total, and most of the new claimants have "non-malignant" injuries which don't blight their lives. This category covers more than nine claims in every 10 submitted in the last decade.

The Rand researchers are too polite to wonder whether those in this 90pc really are victims of asbestos-related injury, or have merely fallen for the prospect of riches, egged on by lawyers who have made a lucrative living out of finding new cases, and abetted by doctors who are under pressure to diagnose.

Whether any real harm has been done to these "victims", they have certainly managed to inflict serious damage on others. Defending against claims is an expensive business, even for those companies which avoid bankruptcy. The first asbestos-related corporate failure was in 1976, and by 2004, at least 73 firms had gone bust, resulting in over 50,000 job losses in America alone, according to an earlier study.

The workers lose as much as $50,000 in lifetime earnings, and an average of a quarter of their pension. The Turner & Newall workers in Britain might feel those are the lucky ones, since they have had to force a change in the law to get anything at all for their lifetimes of pension contributions.

Given the way that more and more people are coming forward decades after the supposedly life-threatening event, the massive sums involved, and the fact that $40billion went to the lawyers (about equally split between claimants' and defendants' lawyers), it's no surprise that the report asks: Is there a better way? Given that America sometimes seems to be populated entirely by lawyers and litigants, it's no surprise that the answer from the combined brains of the Rand Institute is: We can't think of one.

[waldron] 25/5/2005 18:15

ABB Asbestos Deal Shrugged Off By Market

Wednesday, May 25, 2005 11:54:33 AM ET
Dow Jones Newswires



1532 GMT [Dow Jones]--News that ABB (ABB) will file revised asbestos Chapter 11 plan for its US unit by June 13 shrugged off by market. Trader says favorable end to company's asbestos problems priced in since ABB recently increased its settlement proposal to $1.43B from a previous $1.2B. Trades +0.3% at CHF7.91. (MGE)

[waldron] 25/5/2005 10:29

Asbestos News Good For Hanson - Analyst

Wednesday, May 25, 2005 3:09:16 AM ET
Dow Jones Newswires



0700 GMT [Dow Jones] Hanson (HAN) may open higher following other asbestos-related stocks in the US Tuesday, says analyst. US stocks rallied over compromise in US Senate to avoid a prolonged battle over asbestos legislation. "Anything going its way on that issue is a positive for them." Shares closed at 510p. (PBA)

[waldron] 25/5/2005 09:51

Saint Gobain To Open Higher On Asbestos Bill

Wednesday, May 25, 2005 2:49:27 AM ET
Dow Jones Newswires



0635 GMT [Dow Jones] Saint-Gobain (12500.FR) is expected to get a boost at open, following other asbestos-related stocks in the US on Tuesday, says Athmane Benserroug, analyst at Aurel Leven. US stocks rallied as a major obstacle in the US Senate to consideration of a trust fund asbestos-liability bill, the judicial nominees battle, faded after an agreement among senators to avoid a prolonged fight. Shares closed at EUR46.68. (SIN)

[maywillow] 23/5/2005 15:56

Asbestos epidemic hits people of working ageThe perception that deadly asbestos cancers only affect people in old age is being challenged by recent tragic cases. Civil engineer John Kay, 40, has been given just months to live after being diagnosed with the asbestos cancer mesothelioma. He has launched a High Court action for compensation against Bradford-based Kelda Group Plc - formerly Yorkshire Water - after he contracted the killer disease, a progressive and incredibly painful cancer which is very difficult to treat. The case is the latest in series affecting people of working age. Barry Welch was just 32 when he died of the asbestos cancer mesothelioma last month (Risk 203). Melvin Raymond was 63 when mesothelioma killed him in February (Risks 199), Derek Trelfa was 66 when he died of the same condition in January (Risks 202) and Sylvie Tapley (Risks 197) and Janet Watson (Risks 191) were both just 59. Joiner Ian Lunn who died in August last year was 61 (Risks 191) and shipyard work Ian Cruickshank only 52 (Risks 191). Former electrician and organic farmer Raymond Gould died in August last year from mesothelioma aged 60, seven weeks after being told he had contracted the disease. Cleaning company boss Mike Brien died of mesothelioma in March aged 53.


Yorkshire Post. The Courier on Raymond Gould's death. Dorset Echo on Mike Brien's death.

[maywillow] 17/4/2005 09:10

Asbestos deaths stalk DIY workers
By Lou Robson and Mary Papadakis
17apr05
A NATIONAL addiction to home renovation has been blamed for a surge in cases of the killer asbestos-caused disease mesothelioma.

Renovators are being warned that even small jobs can be fatal as new figures in Victoria show mesothelioma cases have more than quadrupled since 1982.

Queensland Health figures show the number of terminal asbestos cases has risen from 49 in 1993 to 73 in 1998 – a terrifying 50 per cent increase in just five years.

Medical experts and asbestos support groups warn that the situation will get worse.

Asbestos Diseases Foundation of Australia president Barry Robson said the disease was once limited to people exposed to asbestos at work, such as wharfies and tradespeople, and their families.









But the new figures reflected a third group – those exposed to asbestos fibres during home renovations up to 30 years ago, he said.

Renovators could account for up to 25 per cent of mesothelioma cases with the number tipped to rise in the near future because of the time-lag of at least 15 years between exposure to asbestos and the onset of mesothelioma.

"We were always worried about the third wave – this is the third wave, it's the start of it," Mr Robson said.

"It's going to keep increasing because of the home renovations."

Mr Robson said home renovation TV shows were not doing enough to warn viewers of the hazards.

Queensland Asbestos Related Support Society president Shirley White said something had to be done to stop "people unknowingly exposing themselves to a substance which can cause creeping cancer".

Mrs White, 69, likened the disease to a jellyfish with tentacles in the chest and lungs.

"One fibre and around 30 years is all it takes," she said.

"It's undetectable, but when it activates many sufferers find they have only six weeks to live."

Her husband Reg, 66, a former wharfie, has asbestos-related cancer.

She said many renovators were unaware the deadly substance was extremely common – found in hair-dryers, ceilings, ovens, linoleum tiles, downpipes and fences.

One in three homes built before 1987 contains the fibres.

The support society has a register of 584 sufferers but that figure is expected to swell, with experts estimating 40,000 cases of mesothelioma will emerge in the next 35 years.

[maywillow] 13/4/2005 12:44

Saint-Gobain Up; Asbestos Relief In Sight

Wednesday, April 13, 2005 4:38:45 AM ET
Dow Jones Newswire



0818 GMT [Dow Jones] Saint-Gobain (12500.FR) +1.7% at EUR48.30 after US Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman plans to finish drafting an asbestos-injury trust-fund bill later this week, says trader. A legislative solution would relieve the burden of claims on companies by creating a large trust fund to handle litigation, he adds. (SIN)

[maywillow] 13/4/2005 10:06

Hanson Shares Climb as U.S. Closes on Asbestos Accord (Update2)
April 13 (Bloomberg) -- Shares of Hanson Plc, the producer of sand and gravel with $400 million set aside to cover asbestos claims, rose as much as 5.7 percent after U.S. senators neared agreement on a fund to compensate victims of the cancer-causing substance.

Shares of Hanson, which faced 136,000 outstanding asbestos actions at the end of last year, gained as much as 28.5 pence to 528.5 pence. By limiting claims, the U.S. fund would make the London- based company more attractive to potential purchasers, said Simon Brown, an analyst at Williams de Broe in the U.K. capital.

``Noone would look at buying Hanson while the asbestos liabilities exist, but once that risk has been capped then it's open season,'' said Brown, who recommends buying the stock. ``Certainly a venture capitalist could come in and break the business up.''

Senators are ``very close'' to bipartisan agreement on setting up the $140 billion asbestos trust fund, Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter said yesterday. The bill would pay as much as $1.1 million to victims of diseases caused by exposure to asbestos and end litigation that has bankrupted more than 70 companies.

Shares of Hanson, the world's biggest supplier of aggregates to the construction industry, were trading at 521 pence as of 9:39 a.m. in London. The stock has gained 16 percent this year for a market value of 3.83 billion pounds ($7.25 billion).

Hanson, which gets about 40 percent of its business in North America, increased its provision for asbestos-related payments by 80 million pounds last year, it said Feb. 24. Claims against the company relate to Kaiser Cement Corp., bought in 1988 and Beazer Plc, acquired in 1991.

U.S. Gains

Shares of U.S. businesses hardest hit by asbestos claims also advanced. Chicago-based wallboard producer USG Corp., which used asbestos in sealants, had gained 24 percent to $43.90 by the close of trading in New York. W.R. Grace & Co. of Maryland, which sold asbestos-tainted insulation, added 32 percent to $10.63. Both companies filed for bankruptcy protection in 2001.

Some Republican lawmakers said there are still unresolved issues, such as how much money would be needed to start the fund. Utah Senator Orrin Hatch said another week of negotiations will be needed before a deal can be reached.

Asbestos, a heat-resistant material used in insulation, auto parts and construction products since the early 1900s, can cause respiratory illness and has been linked to a rare and particularly lethal form of cancer that can surface years after exposure.

[ariane] 27/3/2005 07:36

Lummus deal to ringfence ABB asbestos claims
March 27, 2005 12:00 AM (GMT)
ABB is a step closer to resolving the US asbestos lawsuits that not long ago threatened to bankrupt the Swiss company.

ABB reached an agreement with plaintiffs to reorganise its combustion engineering and Lummus subsidiaries, targeted by the suits, and contribute a further $232m (£120m, E171m) to a $1.2bn trust fund to settle outstanding claims.

The settlement - still to be voted on by claimants, ruled on by a bankruptcy court and confirmed by a district court, all without appeal - would ringfence the liabilities of ABB's units and cap claims.

Investors breathed a sigh of relief on hearing the news that the decade-long dispute may soon be at an end.

Settling an agreement so soon after a court rejected an earlier proposal last year would lend credibility to the new management team and a company that has badly dented investor confidence in recent years.

And there's certain to be relief that the financial impact of the additional payment is expected to be limited, with proceeds from the planned disposal of Lummus helping to cover the cost.

Further, a settlement should prompt S&P and Moody's to raise their outlooks for ABB. The litigation uncertainty had delayed a return to investment grade, despite ABB making a profit last year and improvements in operating cash flow.

So everything is rosy?

Since ABB has been trading on 15 times estimated 2005 earnings, according to figures from JCF Group, one might think so. Siemens trades on 15.4 times earnings and Schneider on 14.8 times earnings. And the jump in ABB's shares on Monday had them up more than 18% since the start of the year.

But ABB still is burdened by debt that, while down substantially on year, was a not insignificant $5.5bn at the end of 2004. With pricing pressure in its main markets and reduced headroom for any more restructuring savings after the plans launched in recent years, this may be slow to whittle down.

ABB must also focus on improving margins at its power technology unit, where it has struggled to meet its own targets. Indeed, hitting targets and reversing a reputation for disappointment will be key to justifying any valuation upgrade on ABB going forward.

A good start would be hitting its 2005 targets of a 7.7% ebit (earnings before interest and tax) margin and a drop in gearing to 50% - ambitious, but certainly achievable provided economic conditions remain largely supportive.

ROBB STEWART

Dow Jones Newswires

[maywillow] 21/3/2005 07:12

ZURICH (AFX) - ABB Ltd said it has reached an agreement with asbestos
claimants on the terms of an amended reorganisation plan for bankrupt US units
Combustion Engineering (CE) and ABB Lummus Global.
The agreement, which has still to be confirmed by the bankruptcy court,
requires ABB to contribute an additional fixed amount of 232 mln usd to the
trust fund, the engineering group said.
All parties to the agreement believe the amended plan will "fully address"
the issues raised in the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals decision of last December,
ABB said.
The extra contribution will be derived from the sale of ABB Lummus Global
assets within two years of the plan's effective date or by a direct contribution
from ABB, the company said.
Given the subsequent nature of this event, ABB will revise its already
published financial results for 2004 to incorporate the full impact of this
amended plan.
"This agreement is a vital step towards a final resolution of our asbestos
issue", ABB chief executive Fred Kindle said.
at/jfr