Bill Text: IL SB0098 | 2019-2020 | 101st General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Civil Practice Law of the Code of Civil Procedure to add a Part concerning asbestos trust claims. Includes a statement of legislative findings and purpose. Defines terms. Provides that within 30 days after an asbestos action is filed, the plaintiff shall: (1) provide all parties with a sworn statement indicating that an investigation has been conducted and that all asbestos trust claims that can be made by the plaintiff have been filed; and (2) provide all parties with all trust claim materials from all law firms connected to the plaintiff in relation to exposure to asbestos. Provides that a plaintiff has a continuing duty to supplement the information and materials within 30 days after the plaintiff supplements an asbestos trust claim, receives additional information or materials related to an asbestos trust claim, or files an additional trust claim. Provides that, not less than 60 days before trial, if a defendant believes the plaintiff has not filed all asbestos trust claims, the defendant may move and the court may enter an order to require the plaintiff to file additional trust claims. Provides that trust claim materials and trust governance documents are presumed to be relevant and authentic, and are admissible in evidence in an asbestos action. Provides that a claim of privilege does not apply to trust claim materials or trust governance documents and that a defendant may seek discovery from an asbestos trust. Provides that a defendant is entitled to a setoff in the amount the plaintiff has received or will receive from an asbestos trust.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)

Status: (Failed) 2021-01-13 - Session Sine Die [SB0098 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2019-SB0098-Introduced.html

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101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2019 and 2020 SB0098 Introduced 1/23/2019, by Sen. Jason A. Barickman SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
735 ILCS 5/Art. II Pt. 24 heading new
735 ILCS 5/2-2401 new
735 ILCS 5/2-2402 new
735 ILCS 5/2-2403 new
735 ILCS 5/2-2404 new
735 ILCS 5/2-2405 new
735 ILCS 5/2-2406 new
Amends the Civil Practice Law of the Code of Civil Procedure to add a Part concerning asbestos trust claims. Includes a statement of legislative findings and purpose. Defines terms. Provides that within 30 days after an asbestos action is filed, the plaintiff shall: (1) provide all parties with a sworn statement indicating that an investigation has been conducted and that all asbestos trust claims that can be made by the plaintiff have been filed; and (2) provide all parties with all trust claim materials from all law firms connected to the plaintiff in relation to exposure to asbestos. Provides that a plaintiff has a continuing duty to supplement the information and materials within 30 days after the plaintiff supplements an asbestos trust claim, receives additional information or materials related to an asbestos trust claim, or files an additional trust claim. Provides that, not less than 60 days before trial, if a defendant believes the plaintiff has not filed all asbestos trust claims, the defendant may move and the court may enter an order to require the plaintiff to file additional trust claims. Provides that trust claim materials and trust governance documents are presumed to be relevant and authentic, and are admissible in evidence in an asbestos action. Provides that a claim of privilege does not apply to trust claim materials or trust governance documents and that a defendant may seek discovery from an asbestos trust. Provides that a defendant is entitled to a setoff in the amount the plaintiff has received or will receive from an asbestos trust.
LRB101 05550 LNS 50566 b
A BILL FOR
SB0098 LRB101 05550 LNS 50566 b
AN ACT concerning civil law.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Code of Civil Procedure is amended by adding
Part 24 to Article II as follows:
(735 ILCS 5/Art. II Pt. 24 heading new)
Part 24. Asbestos Trust Claims
(735 ILCS 5/2-2401 new)
Sec. 2-2401. Findings and purpose.
(a) The General Assembly finds that:
(1) over 120 employers have declared bankruptcy at
least partially due to asbestos-related liability;
(2) scores of trusts have been established in
bankruptcy proceedings to form a multi-billion dollar
compensation system for asbestos claimants outside of the
civil courts, and new asbestos trusts continue to be
formed;
(3) asbestos claimants typically seek compensation
from solvent defendants in civil actions and from trusts or
claims facilities formed in asbestos bankruptcy
proceedings;
(4) there is limited transparency between these 2 paths

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to recovery;
(5) an absence of transparency with respect to asbestos
bankruptcy trust claims has resulted in the suppression of
evidence in asbestos actions;
(6) a federal bankruptcy court found that trust claim
filings are being manipulated and information withheld in
order to inflate recoveries in asbestos actions;
(7) the lack of transparency regarding trust claims
information harms Illinois employers, their employees,
their shareholders, and the communities in which they
operate; companies that pay inflated settlements and
awards in asbestos cases have fewer resources to pay future
claimants and invest in the State's economy; and
(8) transparency with respect to asbestos trust claims
and claims made in civil asbestos actions promotes the
integrity of civil asbestos court proceedings and furthers
recovery longevity to help future plaintiffs.
(b) It is the purpose of this Part to:
(1) provide transparency with respect to asbestos
trust claims and claims made in civil asbestos actions; and
(2) reduce the opportunity for withholding or
suppression of trust-related exposure evidence in asbestos
actions.
(735 ILCS 5/2-2402 new)
Sec. 2-2402. Definitions. As used in this Part:

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"Asbestos action" means a claim for damages or other relief
presented in a civil action arising out of, based on, or
related to the health effects of exposure to asbestos and any
derivative claim made by or on behalf of a person exposed to
asbestos or a representative, spouse, parent, child, or other
relative of that person.
"Asbestos trust" means a government-approved or
court-approved trust, qualified settlement fund, compensation
fund, or claims facility created as a result of an
administrative or legal action, a court-approved bankruptcy,
or pursuant to 11 U.S.C. 524(g) or 11 U.S.C. 1121(a) or other
applicable provision of law, that is intended, in whole or in
part, to provide compensation to claimants arising out of,
based on, or related to the health effects of exposure to
asbestos.
"Trust claim materials" means a final executed proof of
claim and all documents and information submitted to or
received from an asbestos trust by the plaintiff, including
claim forms and supplementary materials, affidavits,
depositions and trial testimony of the plaintiff and others
knowledgeable about the plaintiff's exposure history, work
history, exposure allegations, and medical and health records,
all documents that reflect the status of a claim against an
asbestos trust, and all documents relating to the settlement of
trust claims.
"Trust governance documents" means all documents that

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relate to eligibility and payment levels, including claims
payment matrices, trust distribution procedures, or plans for
reorganization, for an asbestos trust.
(735 ILCS 5/2-2403 new)
Sec. 2-2403. Required disclosures by plaintiff.
(a) Within 30 days after an asbestos action is filed, the
plaintiff shall:
(1) provide all parties with a sworn statement
indicating that an investigation has been conducted and
that all asbestos trust claims that can be made by the
plaintiff have been filed; and
(2) provide all parties with all trust claim materials
from all law firms connected to the plaintiff in relation
to exposure to asbestos.
(b) A plaintiff has a continuing duty to supplement the
information and materials required under subsection (a) within
30 days after the plaintiff supplements an asbestos trust
claim, receives additional information or materials related to
an asbestos trust claim, or files an additional trust claim.
(735 ILCS 5/2-2404 new)
Sec. 2-2404. Defendant identification of additional
asbestos trust claims.
(a) Not less than 60 days before trial, if a defendant
believes the plaintiff has not filed all asbestos trust claims

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as required under Section 2-2403, the defendant may move the
court for an order to require the plaintiff to file additional
trust claims.
(b) If the court determines that there is a sufficient
basis for the plaintiff to file an asbestos trust claim
identified by the defendant, the court shall stay the action
until the plaintiff files the asbestos trust claim and produces
all related trust claim materials.
(c) An asbestos action may not be set for trial until at
least 60 days after the plaintiff complies with this Section.
(735 ILCS 5/2-2405 new)
Sec. 2-2405. Discovery; use of materials.
(a) Trust claim materials and trust governance documents
are presumed to be relevant and authentic, and are admissible
in evidence in an asbestos action. A claim of privilege does
not apply to trust claim materials or trust governance
documents.
(b) A defendant in an asbestos action may seek discovery
from an asbestos trust. The plaintiff may not claim privilege
or confidentiality to bar discovery and shall provide consent
or other expression of permission that may be required by the
asbestos trust to release information and materials sought by a
defendant.
(735 ILCS 5/2-2406 new)

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Sec. 2-2406. Setoff. In an asbestos action in which damages
are awarded, a defendant is entitled to a setoff in the amount
the plaintiff has received from an asbestos trust and, for
trust claims not yet paid as of the date of entry of judgment,
the amount the plaintiff will receive as specified in the
asbestos trust governance documents. If multiple defendants
are found liable for damages, the court shall distribute the
amount of the setoff proportionally between the defendants,
according to the liability of each defendant.