Category: Shook & Fletcher

Shook & Fletcher: Notice of updated procedures re: Derivative claims

Shook & Fletcher Asbestos Settlement Trust

May 21, 2026

Notice to Claimants and Claimants’ Counsel of Amended Section 5.4 of the Claims Resolution Procedures Regarding Derivative Claims

The Trustee, with the consent of the Trust Advisory Committee (the TAC) and the Futures Representative (the FR), pursuant to section 8.1 of the Trust’s Claims Resolution Procedures (the CRP), has determined to amend section 5.4 of the CRP with respect to Derivative Claims.  This amendment is effective immediately and applies to all pending and future claims. 

Section 5.4 is amended to read as follows:

          5.4     Derivative Claims.  If a Trust Claimant alleges a Trust Claim resulting from exposure to an occupationally-exposed person (referred to herein as derivative or secondary exposure), such as a family member, the Trust Claimant shall elect Individual Review by the Trust and pay the IR Fee pursuant to Section 5.2(f) above.

       For all claims, the Trust Claimant with secondary exposure must establish that (a) the claimant is suffering from one (1) of the four (4) compensable Disease Categories described in Section 5.2(e) above, or an asbestos related disease otherwise compensable under the CRP; (b) the occupationally-exposed person would meet the exposure requirements under this CRP that would be applicable had the occupationally-exposed  person filed a direct claim against the Trust; (c) the claimant’s secondary exposure to the occupationally-exposed person occurred within the same time frame as the occupationally-exposed person’s primary exposure; and (d) the claimant’s secondary exposure was a cause of the claimed disease.

       If a Trust Claimant is seeking compensation for an asbestos-related disease other than Mesothelioma, the Trust Claimant with secondary exposure must also establish that the claimant was exposed to the occupationally-exposed person for a total period that is at least five times the exposure durations required for the occupationally-exposed person to ensure that the intensity and the duration of the Trust Claimant’s secondary exposure are sufficient to establish an equivalent level of exposure to that required under this CRP for an occupationally-exposed person with respect to the relevant Disease Category.  For Trust Claimants seeking compensation for a Non-Malignant Asbestos-Related Disease, this means the Trust Claimant with secondary exposure must establish that they were exposed through the occupationally-exposed person for at least: (i) 30 months of the occupationally-exposed person’s Shook & Fletcher Exposure prior to December 31, 1985; and (ii) 25 years of the occupationally-exposed person’s cumulative occupational exposure to asbestos, all 25 years of which must have occurred prior to December 31, 1986.  

       All other liquidation and payment rights and limitations under this CRP shall be applicable to such derivative Trust Claims.

 

Shook & Fletcher: Claims Processing

The Shook & Fletcher Asbestos Settlement Trust (the “Trust”) is pleased to announce that, starting June 1, 2024, Claims Resolution Management Corporation (“CRMC”) will serve as the claims processing facility for the Trust. The Trust’s current claims processor is Verus LLC (“Verus”); Verus began processing claims for the Trust in October 2023, when it purchased the claims processing business of MFR Claims Processing, Inc., the Trust’s long-time claims processor. To effectuate the transition to CRMC, Verus will stop accepting claims against the Trust at the close of business on April 30, 2024. In order to facilitate a smooth transition to CRMC, the Trust will pause accepting claims during May 2024, and CRMC will begin accepting claims for the Trust on June 1, 2024. CRMC has posted the necessary law firm filing documents to its website. There are two required documents for a firm to begin filing; the Hybrid Filer Agreement and User Administrator Form. Filing law firms should complete both documents and email them to DSnow@claimsres.com so you are ready to file on June 1. To obtain those documents, please visit the Shook Trust documents page. In the interim, if you have any questions, please contact CRMC by email at inquiry@claimsres.com or by calling (800) 536- 2722.

SPECIAL NOTICE REGARDING DEADLINES FOR FILING CLAIMS DURING MAY 2024:

Please note that section 5.2(b) of the Trust’s Claims Resolution Procedures (the “CRP”) requires that all new claims must be filed with the Trust within three (3) years of the date of diagnosis. In light of the length of time the Trust has been in operation, none of the provisions of the CRP relating to any other deadlines for filing claims or any tolling of any applicable federal, state or other statutes of limitations apply, and the three-year filing deadline is a firm deadline. The Trust understands that some claims may need to be filed before the end of May 2024 to comply with the Trust’s three-year filing deadline. Please file such claims with Versus as soon as possible, and in any event before April 30, 2024. The Trust will not be able to accept claims for filing between May 1, 2024 and June 1, 2024.