Rutland Fire Clay Company Trust Fund and Lawsuits

Overview of the Rutland Fire Clay Company Asbestos Trust

The Rutland Fire Clay Company Asbestos Trust was created following the Rutland Fire Clay Company’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy in October 1999. The trust became inactive in 2011 and remains so. It only ever accepted claims from November 2010 to January 2011.

Mesothelioma lawsuits can no longer be filed against Rutland, which is now known as Rutland Products. Because this asbestos trust fund is no longer paying claims, people exposed to Rutland asbestos products should work with a knowledgeable attorney to seek alternative legal options.

The company faced 37,000 pending cases and held $3 million in assets in 1999. President Thomas Martin testified before Congress that year. He estimated liability for current and future asbestos claims at $67 million and blamed those claims for the company’s bankruptcy.

Legal Help for People Exposed to Rutland Fire Clay Company Asbestos Products

People who developed mesothelioma because of exposure to Rutland Fire Clay Company asbestos products benefit from legal counsel. Your mesothelioma lawyer can assess all of your exposure history and determine if you qualify for workers’ compensation or other avenues for compensation.

If another asbestos company was also responsible for your asbestos exposure, your lawyer may recommend you pursue a trust fund claim, if they have one, or a lawsuit against that company. To pursue your claim, your legal team will gather your work and medical records, witness statements and all relevant evidence.

A Patient Advocate can match you with a top asbestos attorney who knows Rutland cases and alternative compensation options inside out. Call anytime for free, private help. Additionally, they’ll schedule appointments for you with leading mesothelioma doctors, navigate insurance for you, assist with VA benefits claims and connect you with support groups for survivors and caregivers.

Mesothelioma Lawsuits Involving Rutland Fire Clay Company

From 1984 to 1999, 50,000 asbestos-related cases were filed against Rutland. Workers who used Rutland’s asbestos products on the job filed the majority of these lawsuits.

In one case in 2001, for example, Owens Corning Fiberglass added Rutland as a party defendant. Pipefitter Kenneth Cobb spent 40 years using asbestos insulation and wallboard for refrigeration, air conditioning and heating systems and pneumatic control systems. Cobb developed asbestosis and received $689,782 in compensatory damages.

Asbestos issues aren’t the only legal problem Rutland has dealt with in recent years. In 2016, Rutland paid a fine of $1,000 to the state of California for violating health and safety codes when it failed to properly label its Safe Lite Fire Starter Squares, which had the potential of releasing toxic chemicals into the air. In 2008, the California Air Resources Board fined Rutland $10,000 for distributing its One Match Gelled Fire Starter without proper certification.

Rutland Fire Clay Company’s Connection to Asbestos

Rutland Fire Clay Company used asbestos fibers in many products since its start in Montpelier, Vermont, in 1883. Engineers added the heat-resistant mineral to patching compounds and cements that controlled creosote and soot in chimneys and stoves.

The company later expanded from its first stove lining to stove polishes, home repair items and construction materials. Demand grew during World War II when wood stove use surged. Asbestos made production cheap and effective for high-heat needs.

Headquartered in Jacksonville, Illinois, it also maintains manufacturing in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Like other asbestos companies, Rutland faced tens of thousands of lawsuits from workers diagnosed with asbestos-related diseases.

Who Was at Risk of Asbestos Exposure From Rutland Fire Clay Company?

Workers in construction and manufacturing handled Rutland Fire Clay Company products daily. They mixed, cut and applied the company’s asbestos-containing cements and insulation without safety gear. These tasks released dangerous fibers into the air that people breathed over the years.

Higher Risk Occupations

• Boiler workers
• Brick masons
• Carpenters
• Cement workers
• Construction workers
• Drywallers
• Roofers
• Rutland employees

Construction workers and bricklayers who used Rutland’s older cement products inhaled asbestos fibers. Rutland employees prepared these materials from Vermont rocks. They faced direct on the job asbestos exposure during mixing and packaging.

Rutland Fire Clay Company’s Asbestos Products

Rutland Fire Clay Company made cements and coatings with asbestos from 1900 to 1978. Workers and homeowners applied these products to boilers, furnaces and roofs. They cut, mixed and sanded the materials, which released tiny asbestos fibers into the air.

Rutland’s Asbestos Products

• Rutland Boiler Covering
• Rutland Furnace Cement
• Rutland Ready-Mined Joint Cement
• Rutland Roofing Cement No. 4
• Rutland Roofing Cement No. 7
• Rutland Wallboard Joint Cement

Some of these products contained up to 10% chrysotile asbestos. Damage to these products releases toxic asbestos dust. People inhale these fibers repeatedly over time. This action causes mesothelioma.

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