American Cemwood
By the late 1990s, many cement fiber products had been heavily
marketed to the public, and the sales volume was high. Birka-White
Law Offices served as co-lead counsel in the first "fake shake" class
action filed in 1998 regarding the American Cemwood product manufactured
by MacMillan Bloedel, a Canadian based company.
The case was litigated in two phases.
The first phase was resolved in 2000 with the Superior Court
granting final approval to a $105 million partial settlement. In 2003,
the Court granted final approval to the second phase of the litigation,
bringing the combined settlement in the Cemwood litigation to $140 million.
Cemwood Settlement Administration
After the American Cemwood class action was settled, a Settlement Administration was created to distribute the settlement proceeds which remains in operation today. Class members simply submit a claim form to start the claims process.
Birka-White Law Offices played a lead role litigating the case and structuring the Administration protocols for payments to the owners of Cemwood roofs. We continue to oversee the administration of the Cemwood Settlement Fund. To date, thousands of homeowners have received settlement payments and the fund remains open for future claimants.
If you are a Cemwood claimant or have questions about the American Cemwood product, go to www.cemwoodclaims.com.