Flexitallic Gasket Company Trust Fund and Lawsuits

The Flexitallic Gasket Company Asbestos Trust

Federal-Mogul Corporation filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on October 1, 2001, and emerged on November 13, 2007. The company established the Federal-Mogul Asbestos Injury Trust with 4 subfunds to handle claims from different asbestos companies it had acquired. The T&N Subfund handles all Flexitallic asbestos claims and was initially funded with $635 million when it began accepting claims on August 25, 2010.

Flexitallic Asbestos Trust Updates

1. The current payment percentage is 12.2%
2. Mesothelioma has a scheduled payment of $50,000
3. Lung cancer has a scheduled payment of $10,625
4. Other cancers has a scheduled payment of $3,700

Federal-Mogul acquired Turner & Newall in 1998, inheriting asbestos liabilities from T&N’s 1970 purchase of Flexitallic Gasket Company. Facing a high volume of asbestos litigation from these acquisitions, Federal-Mogul chose to file for bankruptcy protection. Workers exposed to asbestos from Flexitallic products who develop asbestos-related diseases like mesothelioma are eligible to file claims with the T&N Subfund.

Legal Help for People Exposed to Flexitallic Gasket Company’s Asbestos Products

Workers who handled Flexitallic’s asbestos-containing gaskets and later developed mesothelioma or other asbestos diseases can benefit significantly from legal representation. A mesothelioma lawyer helps claimants document their exposure history, gather employment records and medical reports and submit complete claims to The Federal-Mogul Asbestos Trust within its required deadlines.

Because many workers encountered asbestos products from multiple asbestos manufacturers throughout their careers, an experienced asbestos attorney will conduct a thorough investigation of your entire work history. This comprehensive review identifies all companies whose products contributed to your exposure, which is essential since some manufacturers never filed for bankruptcy and can still be sued directly through mesothelioma lawsuits. Your attorney will manage both trust fund claims and potential litigation strategically, ensuring that payments from one source are properly accounted for in others as may be required.

Contact our Patient Advocates for confidential assistance connecting with experienced asbestos attorneys who understand Flexitallic claims. We’re here around the clock to provide support that also includes legal referrals, including arranging medical consultations with mesothelioma specialists, connecting you to patient and caregiver communities, and assisting with insurance matters.

Asbestos Litigation Involving Flexitallic

Flexitallic claims accounted for nearly 158,000 of the approximately 350,000 asbestos lawsuits filed against Federal-Mogul. Plaintiffs included Flexitallic manufacturing employees and workers at facilities that used Flexitallic gaskets.

In one notable case, the widow of U.S. Navy veteran Earlon Nunez won $1.2 million after proving his mesothelioma resulted from exposure to Flexitallic gaskets used in ship boilers, where Flexitallic was found partly liable.

Asbestos Lawsuits Involving Flexitallic 

• $35.2 million: These damages were awarded to 22 Texas refinery workers diagnosed with asbestosis who filed a case against Flexitallic and other manufacturers in 2001.
• $4.2 million: A California jury awarded these damages to a Navy veteran in 2001. His suit claimed he developed mesothelioma after exposure to Flexitallic’s asbestos gaskets while working as a boiler tender on a U.S. Navy destroyer.
• $1.2 million: A Louisiana jury awarded these damages to the widow of U.S. Navy veteran Earlon Nunez, who died of mesothelioma at the age of 49 after exposure to asbestos products, including Flexitallic’s asbestos gaskets. Nunez worked in the boiler room of the USS James E. Keyes destroyer and his job involved changing out asbestos gaskets on the boiler. Flexitallic was held 10% liable.

These cases demonstrate how asbestos attorneys used detailed work histories, ship logs and expert testimony to prove Flexitallic’s liability despite shared responsibility with other manufacturers. Today, Flexitallic claims no longer go through the courts and are directed to the asbestos trust fund, where legal help ensures proper documentation for approval.​

Flexitallic’s History With Asbestos

Flexitallic Gasket Company used asbestos tape in its spiral-wound gaskets from 1912 until 1992. The company invented this gasket type in Camden, New Jersey, and remained the sole producer until the 1940s. These gaskets gained fame during World War II for powering U.S. Navy battleships, preventing steam loss.​

British firm T&N PLC bought Flexitallic in 1970 and moved operations to Delaware in 1986. T&N sold assets to Dan-Loc in 1997 but kept asbestos liabilities. 

Federal-Mogul acquired T&N in 1998, inheriting claims that led to bankruptcy in 2001. Dan-Loc renamed it The Flexitallic Group and relocated headquarters to Deer Park, Texas, where it operates today.​

Workers at Risk From Flexitallic Products

Asbestos exposure during manufacturing, installation or removal of Flexitallic’s gaskets caused thousands of workers to develop asbestos-related diseases. These gaskets were used extensively in shipyards, refineries, power plants and other industrial facilities.

Higher Risk Occupations

• Boiler workers
• Flexitallic manufacturing plant workers
• Pipefitters
• Refinery workers
• Shipyard workers
• Veterans of the U.S. armed forces

Whether manufacturing Flexitallic’s products or working somewhere that used Flexitallic gaskets, workers were exposed to asbestos. There is no safe level of asbestos exposure A 2022 European Commission report noted that in 2019 alone, more than 70,000 workers died from past exposure to asbestos 

Flexitallic’s Asbestos Products

Flexitallic’s spiral-wound industrial gasket contained layers of asbestos tape between the gasket’s metal rings. Alternating strips of asbestos tape and metal were spiraled into an interior ring, which was then fitted inside an exterior metal ring. The asbestos tape contained 90% asbestos.

Asbestos Gaskets Flexitallic Produced

• Style D (a self-centering gasket)
• Style R (gaskets for large male and female joints)
• Style T (gaskets for marine boilers)

According to Flexitallic advertisements printed in the 1950s and 1960s, the company used white chrysotile asbestos from Canada and blue crocidolite asbestos from Africa. Asbestos fibers were used as a filler material because of their strength and superior resistance to corrosion. Manufacturers also valued asbestos for its extremely high melting point.

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