Oct. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Fred Baron, the lawyer who won billions of dollars for clients in asbestos cases and served as finance chairman of John Edwards's presidential campaign, died of blood cancer yesterday at his home in Dallas. He was 61.

Baron, a founder of the Baron & Budd law firm, said he had worked as a youth sweeping mounds of asbestos from a factory floor. He later built his legal career by suing makers and users of the material, including W.R. Grace & Co. and Halliburton Co., over claims that exposure caused lung disease and mesothelioma, a fatal cancer. Baron & Budd also represented clients claiming injuries from drugs and toxic chemicals.

``Fred Baron left his fingerprint on the law, the victims and the profession,'' Mark Lanier, the Houston lawyer who represents Baron's family and worked with him on a $4.5 billion asbestos settlement, said today in a telephone interview. ``This world is a better place because of Fred Baron.''

Baron received a Biogen Idec Inc. drug to treat his cancer this month after pleas by former President Bill Clinton, cycling champion Lance Armstrong and Baron's wife, Lisa Blue, who also is an attorney at Dallas-based Baron & Budd. Baron was days from death, his son, Andrew, wrote in a letter to the company sent Oct. 15.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized an oncologist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, to give Baron the drug, Tysabri, under a rule for compassionate use. The drug is approved to treat multiple sclerosis and Crohn's disease and is in the early stages of testing for multiple myeloma, the blood disease that killed Baron.

Edwards Role

Baron took a sabbatical from Baron & Budd and later sold his stake in the firm be more active in Democratic politics, lobby against changes to limit lawsuits and serve as campaign finance chairman for Edwards, a former U.S. senator from North Carolina.

The New York Times reported in August that Baron had a role in helping Edwards, who is married, conceal an affair with Rielle Hunter, who produced videos for the presidential hopeful's campaign.

Baron was a past president of the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, now known as the American Association for Justice. He received his law degree from the University of Texas in 1971 and was assistant editor of the Texas Law Review.

In addition to his wife and son, Baron is survived by four other children.

To contact the reporters on this story: Laurence Viele Davidson in Atlanta at lviele@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: October 31, 2008 12:00 EDT