ADVISORY/Former Attorney General Griffin B. Bell to Deliver Speech on the Impact of Asbestos Litigation on Bankruptcy Law

Business Wire, April 10, 2003

Business Editors/Health/Medical Writers

ADVISORY...for April 11

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 10, 2003

Judge Griffin Bell to Call for Asbestos Litigation Reform at the

American Bankruptcy Institute's Annual Spring Meeting in

Washington DC on April 11

WHO:       Hon. Griffin Bell
WHAT:      Keynote at the American Bankruptcy Institute's Annual
           Meeting with a media availability immediately thereafter
WHEN:      Friday, April 11, 12:15-2:00 pm
WHERE:     Grand Hyatt Washington DC
           1000 H Street NW
           Washington, D.C.  20001
           202-582-1234

In his speech detailing the asbestos litigation crisis and bankruptcy law, Former United States Attorney General Griffin Bell will discuss the causes of the asbestos litigation crisis and the specific responsibility of bankruptcy judges to provide solutions. "Bankruptcy has become the grim reality for many American businesses that are asbestos defendants. While we can debate the reasons for the asbestos crisis, a crisis it is, and something must be done," Bell will argue.

Judge Bell will also argue that the current bankruptcy system does not represent the real victims of asbestos-related illness, stating that "the limited funds available in bankruptcy make it even more critical that courts distinguish between claimants who are sick and those who are not."

He will offer solutions recognizing that healthy people exposed to asbestos "should have the right to recover when, and if, they become sick - but not before that point." Judge Bell will propose ways for bankruptcy jurists to "preserve the rights of the unimpaired to bring claims while recognizing that limited funds exists in bankruptcy for the sick. This may sound like common sense, and it is."

Judge Bell was a federal judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit from 1961-1975, and served as the 72nd U.S. Attorney General from 1977-1979 under President Carter. He is currently a partner with King & Spalding in Atlanta, GA.

Judge Bell will be available to speak with the media immediately following his keynote address, expected to conclude at approximately 2:00 p.m.