Union Carbide holds something of a unique position in asbestos lawsuits.

Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral that was used widely. The mineral is uncommonly fire and heat resistant, even at industrial temperatures. This trait made asbestos highly desirable for a wide variety of applications, including construction, machining, and shipbuilding.

However, it rapidly became obvious that asbestos could cause serious health problems, including asbestos lung cancer, mesothelioma, asbestosis, and other lung diseases and cancers.

However, some manufacturers continued using the material until it was banned by various governments in the 1970s and 1980s. Since many asbestos related diseases like mesothelioma can take decades to fully manifest, many asbestos lawsuits are ongoing. In fact, mesothelioma almost never develops less than 15 years after exposure.

Union Carbide is a major company that used asbestos in its products. The company was founded in 1917 as an industrial chemical manufacturer. The company had major plants at several sites in the United States. Through a series of mergers and buyouts, Union Carbide came to include the Bakelite Corporation, and eventually became a part of Dow Chemical Company.

Union Carbide has faced asbestos lawsuits and will likely face more in the future. Among Union Carbide’s activities, it was involved in the mining and milling of asbestos between 1945 and 1980. Between the years of 1964 and 1972, the company worked with a special type of asbestos called Calidria chrysotile asbestos.

Since asbestos-related diseases like mesothelioma can take decades to develop, asbestos lawsuits are an ongoing issue for Union Carbide. One trial revealed an internal memo from Union Carbide that revealed that the company was aware that asbestos exposure could cause cancer.

In a 2012 mesothelioma lawsuit, a judge awarded a settlement of $48 million to a husband and wife, primarily from Union Carbide. Additionally, there is some evidence that Union Carbide’s own in-house scientists found that the Calidria chrysotile asbestos that Union Carbide used was even more dangerous than regular asbestos.

As a company, Union Carbide has several unusual features in terms of asbestos lung cancer lawsuits. Many companies that face ongoing asbestos litigation have gone bankrupt either from asbestos lawsuits or merely over the passage of time. Additionally, many companies that exposed workers to asbestos have set up trust funds for people who develop mesothelioma, lung cancer, and other asbestos-related diseases, but Union Carbide has not.