In the 1990s, owners of homes with hardboard or oriented strand board (OSB) siding brought class actions against Masonite, Louisiana-Pacific, Georgia-Pacific and ABTco. Courts approved the Louisiana-Pacific, Masonite and Georgia-Pacific settlements between 1996 and 1998. ABTco’s final approval hearing was in 2000. The Masonite, Louisiana-Pacific and Georgia-Pacific claim deadlines have passed, and ABTco’s 25-year claim rule suggests its window has closed too.
Last reviewed: September 2026. Sources are listed at the end of this page.
Which siding class actions were there?
Four manufacturers settled class actions over hardboard or OSB siding. The table also rates each source.
| Product | Case and court | Settlement | Claim deadline | Source quality |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masonite hardboard | Naef v. Masonite, Circuit Court of Mobile County, Alabama | Final approval January 21, 1998 | 2008. Passed. | Court opinions for the case. The deadline comes only from class counsel’s law firm. |
| Louisiana-Pacific (LP) Inner-Seal OSB | In re Louisiana-Pacific Inner-Seal Siding Litigation, U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon | Approved April 26, 1996 | January 1, 2003. Passed. | Federal court opinion |
| Georgia-Pacific (GP) hardboard | Case name not verified. Mobile County Circuit Court. | Approved January 6, 1998 | Final deadline January 1, 2007. Passed. | Associated Press (AP) article reprinted on a law firm’s website |
| ABTco (Abitibi) hardboard | Foster v. ABTco, Inc., et al., Circuit Court of Choctaw County, Alabama, No. CV95-151-M | Final approval hearing September 21, 2000 | 25 years after installation. Likely closed. Confirm with the claims administrator. | InspectAPedia only, a secondary reference site |
What happened in the Masonite case?
A national class of Masonite hardboard siding owners took the case to a jury in Alabama state court and later settled. Naef v. Masonite was filed in December 1994 and amended in January 1995 in the Circuit Court of Mobile County.[1] The certified class covered everyone in the United States who owned property with Masonite hardboard siding made since January 1, 1980.[1]
- A federal court in the Northern District of Alabama sent the removed case back to Mobile County in 1996.[2]
- On June 28, 1996, the Alabama Supreme Court denied Masonite’s challenge to class certification (Ex parte Masonite Corp., 681 So. 2d 1068).[1]
- A jury returned a liability verdict on September 13, 1996. The court granted final approval of the settlement on January 21, 1998.[3]
A separate federal multidistrict litigation (MDL) in Louisiana refused to certify a national class in 1996. It called the Naef verdict confusing at best.[4]
Source note: The settlement terms come from Lieff Cabraser, class counsel’s law firm, not from a court. The firm says covered siding was installed from January 1, 1980 to January 15, 1998, that about 4 million homeowners were in the class, and that claims ran through 2008.[5]
What happened in the Louisiana-Pacific case?
A federal court in Oregon approved a nationwide settlement over LP Inner-Seal OSB siding on April 26, 1996. Judge Robert E. Jones presided. The class covered owners of property with LP siding installed before January 1, 1996. The settlement had a seven-year funding period, and the claims deadline of January 1, 2003 has passed.[6]
The Seattle Times reported in 1998 that the original fund was $275 million. LP announced a potential $500 million payout on October 26, 1998. The paper also reported that LP sold Inner-Seal siding from 1985 to 1995 and that about 800,000 homes had it.[7] Separately, UPI reported in January 1996 that LP settled with Washington and Oregon for $1.8 million.[8]
What happened in the Georgia-Pacific case?
Mobile County Circuit Judge Robert Kendall approved a GP hardboard siding settlement on January 6, 1998, estimated at $20 million to $30 million. The siding came from GP’s plant in Jarratt, Virginia (1979 to 1987) and its plant in Catawba, South Carolina (after 1987). Registration closed August 18, 1998. Compensation deadlines were January 1, 2001 for Jarratt siding and January 1, 2007 for Catawba siding. All have passed.[9]
Source note: This comes from an AP story reprinted on a law firm’s website. We could not verify the formal case name or number.
What happened in the ABTco case?
Foster v. ABTco covered ABTco hardboard siding installed from May 15, 1975 to May 15, 2000. The final approval hearing was September 21, 2000. Claims could be filed up to 25 years after the date of installation.[10]
The 25-year rule suggests the window has now closed for all covered siding. Siding installed on the last eligible date, May 15, 2000, would have reached 25 years in May 2025. This is our reading of the rule, not a statement from the program. Confirm with the claims administrator.
Source note: These details come only from InspectAPedia, a secondary reference site that summarizes the court notice. The official claims site did not load when we checked.
Can you still file a claim?
Not in the Masonite, Louisiana-Pacific or Georgia-Pacific settlements. Their deadlines have passed. For ABTco, check with the claims administrator. If your siding is failing now, document the damage and read about builder warranties and statutes of repose.
This page is general information, not legal advice. Laws change and vary by state. Check the current statute or talk to a licensed attorney in your state before acting.
Related guides
- EIFS class action history: Ruff v. Parex
- Water intrusion and building envelope defects
- What is a construction defect?
- Statutes of limitations vs. statutes of repose
- Resolving a construction defect dispute
Sources
- Supreme Court of Alabama, “Ex parte Masonite Corp.,” June 28, 1996 (Justia).
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, “Naef v. Masonite Corp.,” 1996 (CourtListener).
- Supreme Court of Alabama, “Boschert Merrifield Consultants, Inc. v. Masonite Corp.,” 2004 (Justia).
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, “In re Masonite Corp. Hardboard Siding Products Liability Litigation,” 1996 (CourtListener).
- Lieff Cabraser Heimann and Bernstein, “Masonite Hardboard Siding.” Class counsel’s law firm website.
- U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon, “In re Louisiana-Pacific Inner-Seal Siding Litigation, 234 F. Supp. 2d 1170,” Dec. 13, 2002 (Justia).
- The Seattle Times, “Siding Saga: Homeowners With Failed L-P Siding Fuming About Settlement Delays,” Nov. 22, 1998.
- UPI Archives, “L-P settles siding cases in Wash., Ore.,” Jan. 25, 1996.
- Associated Press (The Commercial Appeal, Jan. 24, 1998), reprinted by Cunningham Bounds, “Alabama Judge OK’s Settlement in Georgia-Pacific Siding Suit.” Law firm reprint of an AP article.
- InspectAPedia, “Abitibi/ABTco Hardboard Siding.” Secondary reference site.