Article ID: 9cc257914d82d48bafd8d60d6417cbbd99936f016a889b0046fb6b1d3fa273f9
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URL: https://www.businessinsurance.com/texas-suits-add-to-countertop-silicosis-liability-crisis/
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Texas suits add to countertop silicosis liability crisis - Business Insurance Skip to content Register for free Search Search Log In Risk Management Cyber Risks Pricing Trends Mergers & Acquisitions Technology Sponsored Content WSIA RISKWORLD Workers Comp & Safety Workers Comp Cost Control Pain Management Workplace Safety International EMEA Asia-Pacific Latin America People Events BI Intelligence Top 100 Agents & Brokers Best Places to Work 2026 Lists Directories Insurance Pricing BI Stock Index Magazine Current Issue Past Issues Subscribe Women to Watch ALL INsurance Resources Risk Perspectives Sponsored Content Webinars White Papers Risk Management Cyber Risks Pricing Trends Mergers & Acquisitions Technology Sponsored Content WSIA RISKWORLD Workers Comp & Safety Workers Comp Cost Control Pain Management Workplace Safety International EMEA Asia-Pacific Latin America People Events BI Intelligence Top 100 Agents & Brokers Best Places to Work 2026 Lists Directories Insurance Pricing BI Stock Index Magazine Current Issue Past Issues Subscribe Women to Watch ALL INsurance Resources Risk Perspectives Sponsored Content Webinars White Papers Risk Management Cyber Risks Pricing Trends Mergers & Acquisitions Technology Sponsored Content WSIA RISKWORLD Workers Comp & Safety Workers Comp Cost Control Pain Management Workplace Safety International EMEA Asia-Pacific Latin America People Events BI Intelligence Top 100 Agents & Brokers Best Places to Work 2026 Lists Directories Insurance Pricing BI Stock Index Magazine Current Issue Past Issues Subscribe Women to Watch ALL INsurance Resources Risk Perspectives Sponsored Content Webinars White Papers Risk Management Cyber Risks Pricing Trends Mergers & Acquisitions Technology Sponsored Content WSIA RISKWORLD Workers Comp & Safety Workers Comp Cost Control Pain Management Workplace Safety International EMEA Asia-Pacific Latin America People Events BI Intelligence Top 100 Agents & Brokers Best Places to Work 2026 Lists Directories Insurance Pricing BI Stock Index Magazine Current Issue Past Issues Subscribe Women to Watch ALL INsurance Resources Risk Perspectives Sponsored Content Webinars White Papers Texas suits add to countertop silicosis liability crisis by Richard Sine Claims Disputes , P/C Insurers , Risk Management Liberty Mutual , The Travelers Cos. Oct 7, 2026 Liberty Mutual units sued two Texas-based makers of artificial stone countertops Monday, expanding a legal battle over who should pay when stone fabricators contract a devastating lung disease. The two suits cited a total of 230 cases in which fabricators sued the makers after contracting silicosis, which fabricators contract when they inhale silica dust when cutting the countertops. Since May, silicosis victims have been awarded verdicts worth $47 million, $17.45 million and $7.1 million by juries against stone makers and distributors. The hundreds of cases have prompted soaring insurance rates in the stonemaking industry. Liberty Mutual argued that it had no duty to defend or indemnify the stone makers because their primary policies exclude any claim where “any part” is caused by silica, alone or combined with other substances, including to the complaints. The umbrella policies also exclude bodily injury arising “in whole or in part” from inhaling or ingesting silica or “silica-related” dust. Both complaints also cite pollution exclusions and an exclusion for damages that occurred prior to the policy period. Liberty Mutual Fire Insurance Co. et al. v. Wilsonart International Holdings LLC et al. was filed against Austin-based Wilsonart. LM Insurance Corp. et al. v. Architectural Surfaces Group, LLC d/b/a ASG Holding, LLC was filed against Architectural Surfaces Group, based in Spicewood, Texas. Both cases were filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas. Most silicosis lawsuits, verdicts and follow-on insurance recovery cases have been in California, though Texas is a new frontier. In September a unit of Argo Group sued in a federal court in Texas to avoid coverage for more than 500 lawsuits against Architectural Surfaces Group. Also on Monday in another silicosis case, Travelers filed a motion urging a California federal court to dismiss a case in which it was sued for coverage of more than 450 silica lawsuits. Travelers said every policy involved contains a silica exclusion, a pollution exclusion, or both, and that both bar coverage. A hearing is scheduled for November 3 in the case, Paragon Industries, Inc. v. Travelers et al . before the U.S. District Court for the Central District of Central California. In late August, Judge Monica Ramirez Almandani of the Central California court certified an appeal over a question of whether silica exclusions bars coverage even though the injuries were caused by silica in combination with metals and resins. Several insurers joined in the appeal, which could affect hundreds of cases. 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