LA County court seeks to coordinate 80 silicosis lawsuits

The presiding judge of the Los Angeles County Superior Court seeks to coordinate nearly 80 silicosis civil cases in Los Angeles, Orange County and San Francisco, but left it up to the judges to decide whether to stay the cases about lung disease from installing granite countertops while the petition to coordinate is pending.

At least a dozen judges assigned to the cases have since stayed the proceedings, according to plaintiffs' attorneys with Metzger Law Group APLC. On Friday, Metzger Law Group filed an ex parte application seeking limited relief from the stay orders so it can serve manufacturers in Europe and Israel named in 159 operative complaints, in compliance with the Hague Service Convention.

Raphael Metzger's declaration states that he was seeking ex parte relief because defendants declined to stipulate to limiting the stay orders to permit service of process abroad. Victor Gonzalez, et al. v. ADB Global Trade LLC, et al., 21STCV06984 (L.A. Super. Ct., case filed Feb. 21, 2021).

Los Angeles County Superior Court Counsel Brad Parr wrote in the petition dated March 28, "[E]ach of the silicosis cases involves plaintiffs who allege that they suffered harm and contracted silicosis in the manufacture and installation of stone countertops. Each case names many defendants (in one case, there are more than 75 defendants); many of the defendants have been named in multiple cases and in multiple different courts.

"The cases are in varying stages of development, and petitioner has determined that coordination of these cases to a single court will promote judicial efficiency and the effective use of the court's and the parties' and their counsel's resources, as well as avoid the consequences of inconsistent procedures and inconsistent rulings on legal and factual questions that are common to all silicosis cases," the petition to the Judicial Council continued.

It is the second effort to coordinate the cases, according to the petition. On April 11, 2023, approximately 22 plaintiffs in 13 cases petitioned the chair of the Judicial Council to coordinate their cases. About two weeks later, Chief Justice of California and chair of the Judicial Council Patricia Guerrero assigned the matter to Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge David S. Cunningham III, who denied the petition on June 8, 2023.

Circumstances have since changed, and the number of silicosis cases has grown "exponentially," according to the petition filed on behalf of Los Angeles County Presiding Judge Sergio C. Tapia II.

"[J]udges within and across the various courts are now confronting the same legal and factual questions and addressing the same motions (such as demurrers) and litigation issues (such as discovery disputes) in each case. This situation raises the prospect not only of the duplication of work by judges, attorneys, and parties, but also the very real specter of inconsistent rulings on the same issues which will require appellate intervention," the filing states.