Quick Facts About Shook & Fletcher
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    Founded:
    1901
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    Years Operated:
    1901-present
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    Headquarters:
    Birmingham, Alabama
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    Business:
    Manufactures insulation products
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    Asbestos Trust:
    Yes
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    Bankruptcy Status:
    Filed in 2002

Shook & Fletcher’s History With Asbestos

Shook & Fletcher got its start manufacturing iron, coal and brick products. It transitioned into the insulation industry in 1949 when it began making asbestos-containing insulation products.

Asbestos was once considered the ideal fireproofing and insulating material for its ability to withstand high temperatures. As a result, insulation industry employees were at risk of exposure as they worked with these asbestos products

Tens of thousands of these workers developed asbestos-related diseases like mesothelioma after handling the company’s products. Many who became ill filed mesothelioma lawsuits

Bankruptcy and Development of Shook & Fletcher Trust

Shook and Fletcher filed to reorganize through Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2002 because of asbestos litigation. The company had already paid more than $40 million in settlements.

The bankruptcy and reorganization plan created the Shook & Fletcher Asbestos Settlement Trust to handle asbestos claims. This asbestos trust fund was established in 2002 and contains an estimated $109 million to compensate people who file claims.

The Shook & Fletcher Asbestos Settlement Trust has raised its payment percentage from 50% to 58% as of May 30, 2025. This means claimants will now receive 58% of their approved claim value. Those who already received 50% will get an additional 8%, as long as the extra payment is at least $175. 

Asbestos Litigation Involving Shook & Fletcher

Workers who developed asbestos-related diseases began filing asbestos lawsuits against Shook and Fletcher in the mid-1970s. At the time of the company’s bankruptcy, it reported at least 80,000 active asbestos lawsuits.

The wife of a former insulator filed one such lawsuit. Her husband passed away from mesothelioma from asbestos exposure at several companies, including Shook & Fletcher. Her wrongful death lawsuit ended in an award of $8.4 million dollars, which was split among all the companies he had worked for.

Before it went bankrupt, Shook & Fletcher joined 19 other asbestos companies in a 1993 class action lawsuit that tried to make insurance companies help pay asbestos claims. The courts threw the case out, and the Supreme Court refused to hear it. After that, Shook & Fletcher settled with every insurer except Safety National Casualty Company. 

The fight with Safety National focused on insurance policies from 1983 to 1985. Lower courts ruled that Safety National only had to cover claims from those years. Shook & Fletcher tried to take the case to the Supreme Court a second time, but the Court said no again.

Shook & Fletcher’s Asbestos Products

Shook & Fletcher produced many products that may have contained asbestos. The company’s product line also included dozens of thermal and acoustic insulation products. 

Products That Contained Asbestos

  • Adhesives
  • Banding seals
  • Ceramics
  • Coatings
  • Cryogenic wool
  • Curtain wall insulation
  • Fabrication equipment
  • Fibers
  • Fiberglass
  • Insulating cement
  • Insulation
  • Mineral fiber pipe
  • Phenolic foam
  • Plastic jacketing
  • Seals
  • Tapes
  • Textiles

More than 34 manufacturing companies helped produce Shook & Fletcher products. These included Dow Chemical Company, Forrest Manufacturing Company and Owens Corning Fiberglass. Workers at these partner companies were also at risk of asbestos exposure during production.

Workers at Risk From Shook & Fletcher Products

Employees who manufactured these products before the 1970s faced a high risk of exposure to asbestos. Construction workers often came into contact with asbestos when installing or repairing Shook & Fletcher products. 

Occupations at Risk 

  • Automobile factory workers
  • Boiler workers
  • Chemical plant workers
  • Construction workers
  • Industrial workers
  • Insulators
  • Mill workers
  • Oil refinery workers
  • Paper plant workers
  • Power plant workers
  • Shipyard workers
  • Steel plant workers
  • Textile plant workers
  • Veterans of the armed forces

These materials remained on job sites long after the company stopped producing asbestos products. Even after the 1970s, industrial workers in certain occupations could have inhaled asbestos fibers while handling these products.

Shook & Fletcher’s Founding and Future

Shook & Fletcher began in 1901 as a manufacturer of iron, brick and coal products. The company expanded into the insulation industry in 1949 and remains one of the largest industrial insulation producers in the southeastern United States. In 1967, company employees purchased Shook & Fletcher, and it has stayed family-owned and operated ever since.

Until the 1970s, the company primarily used asbestos to provide the insulation component in its products. After that period, asbestos fibers were replaced with safer alternatives such as fiberglass and other materials, including polystyrene, talc and hexabromocyclododecane, known as HBCD.

Today, Shook & Fletcher operates 6 distribution facilities serving customers in Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Mississippi and the Gulf Coast. The company partners with more than 30 manufacturers to produce more than 50 specialty products. None of these products are intended for residential insulation use.

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