Court denies trustee motion in Georgia-Pacific's Bestwall asbestos Chapter 11

The bankruptcy court handling the Chapter 11 of Bestwall, the entity Georgia-Pacific created by a Texas two-step divisional merger to hold its asbestos liabilities, denied a motion to appoint a trustee on 26 August 2026, and a parallel motion for an examiner was withdrawn shortly afterwards. Bestwall has alluded to a prospective settlement. Claimants had petitioned the Supreme Court on 20 February 2026, arguing that use of Chapter 11 by a solvent debtor is unconstitutional.

Why this mattersKeeping control of the case leaves Georgia-Pacific's divisional-merger structure intact, a reference point for other industrial groups seeking to isolate legacy asbestos liabilities in bankruptcy.

• The motion to appoint a trustee for Bestwall was denied on 26 August 2026.
• A motion to appoint an examiner was withdrawn shortly after that ruling.
• Bestwall has alluded to a prospective settlement, according to the report.
• Claimants sought certiorari from the Supreme Court on 20 February 2026, arguing Chapter 11 is not available to solvent debtors.
• Bestwall filed Chapter 11 in the Western District of North Carolina on 2 November 2017 after Georgia-Pacific used a Texas two-step.
• A Fourth Circuit panel earlier denied, 2-1, the claimants' subject-matter jurisdiction challenge.

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