States Urge Appeals Court to Rethink Talc Bankruptcy Decision

An appeals court decision in favor of a former talc supply company owned by Berkshire Hathaway threatens state rights and tort victims’ ownership of personal injury claims, a group of states said.

The US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit should reconsider its Sept. 10 ruling that successor liability claims that asbestos exposure victims seek to assert against holding company Brenntag SE belong to the Chapter 11 estate for Whittaker Clark & Daniels Inc., attorneys general for 14 states and Washington, DC said in a filing Wednesday.

The Third Circuit’s decision “imperils states’ advocacy for their residents when corporations ...