Artificial Stone Companies Beat Insurers on Silica Exclusion (1)

Cases brought by stoneworkers alleging chronic illnesses linked to silica and other substances could be covered under liability insurance policies, a California federal judge said.

Exclusions for silica-related claims didn’t unambiguously bar coverage, Judge Mónica Ramírez Almadani of the US District Court for the Central District of California said in a series of orders in separate disputes between artificial stone companies and their insurers, upending a previous ruling. She considered motions in several of the cases concurrently, and issued similar—but separate—rulings in each case.

The rulings mean some insurers, including units of Travelers Cos. and Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co., could ...