Settlement in Manville Trust Case: The Manville...

Settlement in Manville Trust Case: The Manville trust fund will make staggered payments to victims of asbestos diseases based on severity of illness under a tentative settlement of tens of thousands of claims nationwide, lawyers said. The agreement, expected to be completed over the weekend, would mark a major breakthrough in a two-decade-old effort to compensate workers made sick by inhaling asbestos fibers in products made by U.S. companies. The deal would have to be approved by U.S. District Judge Jack B. Weinstein, who earlier this year ordered the Manville trust overhauled after it ran out of cash to pay new claims. The trust has 130,000 claims pending.