Engineered Stone Silicosis Lawsuit: Verdicts, Who Qualifies, and Deadlines

Engineered stone, often sold as quartz, is made from crushed stone bound with resin. It became hugely popular for kitchen countertops. The problem is its silica content: engineered stone can contain much more crystalline silica than natural stone. Cutting, grinding, and polishing it releases fine dust that, when breathed in, scars the lungs.

That scarring is silicosis, a form of pneumoconiosis. In countertop workers it often appears as accelerated silicosis, developing after years rather than decades of exposure and progressing to respiratory failure. Some workers also develop autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis.

The lawsuits target the companies that made and supplied the slabs rather than employers, which workers' compensation usually shields. Plaintiffs claim the manufacturers knew the dust was dangerous, sold slabs with extremely high silica content, and did not adequately warn fabricators. Claims include strict liability for design defect and failure to warn, and negligence. Manufacturers respond that fabrication shops failed to follow safety rules, such as wet cutting and respiratory protection, and that their products can be fabricated safely.

According to a study cited by National COSH, nearly 98% of California engineered stone silicosis patients diagnosed from 2019 to mid 2026 were Latino workers, many of them immigrants.

Gonzalez v. Caesarstone, Cambria, and Color Marble (2024)

Gustavo Reyes Gonzalez, a 34-year-old immigrant from Mexico, worked in stone fabrication shops for about 15 years and developed accelerated silicosis at 33, leading to a lung transplant. His lawsuit named more than 30 slab manufacturers and suppliers; many resolved before trial. On August 7, 2024, his lawyers announced that a Los Angeles County jury had returned a $52,437,366 verdict against Caesarstone USA, Cambria, and Color Marble after a month-long trial, the first U.S. engineered stone silicosis case to reach a verdict.

Martinez Paredes v. Dal-Tile (2026)

In early August 2026, a Santa Monica jury assessed a $47,035,380 verdict against Dal-Tile Distribution, LLC and Dal-Tile, LLC in a case brought by the family of Wilmer Ruben Martinez Paredes, a countertop fabricator who died at 41 of artificial stone silicosis, silicosis-linked rheumatoid arthritis, and an autoimmune disease. The jury awarded $2,035,380 in economic damages and $45 million in non-economic damages, and found the Dal-Tile entities liable for negligence, design defect, and failure to warn, while assigning each 3% of the fault. With so small a share of fault assigned to each Dal-Tile entity, what Dal-Tile actually pays may be far less than the headline number once the court applies the fault findings.

Other cases have ended in confidential settlements, often on the eve of trial. Plaintiff firm Brayton Purcell also reports a separate $7.1 million California jury verdict in an artificial stone silicosis case in which a supplier, Paragon Industries, was a defendant.

Most cases are in California state courts, especially in Los Angeles County, because California has the largest known cluster of cases and an active public health surveillance program. There is no federal MDL and no class action; each worker or family files an individual case against the slab makers and suppliers whose products they cut.

The number of patients keeps rising. A study cited by National COSH documented 592 California engineered stone workers diagnosed with silicosis between January 2019 and June 2026, including 65 who received lung transplants and 31 who died. Because silicosis can take years to show symptoms, more cases are expected among people who worked in the industry before safety rules tightened.

Regulation is catching up. The Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board adopted an emergency temporary standard on December 14, 2023, which took effect December 29, 2023, requiring wet methods without exception for high-exposure tasks on artificial stone above 0.1% crystalline silica, along with other protections. On September 16, 2026, Cal/OSHA released a draft emergency regulation that would prohibit fabricating engineered stone containing more than 1% crystalline silica, with public comments accepted through September 30, 2026. It was not final as of this update.

Attorneys handling these cases generally look for:

• Work with engineered stone. Cutting, edging, polishing, grinding, or installing quartz or similar engineered stone slabs, usually over several years in a fabrication shop.
• A silicosis diagnosis confirmed by imaging, lung function testing, or biopsy. Related autoimmune diagnoses can add to a claim.
• Product identification. The slab brands or suppliers your shops used, which can often be traced through shop records, invoices, and coworkers.
• Timely filing within the deadline in your state.

Workers who only handled natural granite or marble, or whose lung disease has another cause, have weaker claims. People with early silicosis still qualify; you do not need to wait until you need a transplant. In fact, waiting can hurt, because the filing deadline may start running at diagnosis, not when the disease becomes disabling.

Suing the slab manufacturers is separate from workers' compensation against your employer. You may be able to pursue both. For how individual injury suits work, see how to sue a company and class action vs. mass tort.

Manufacturers often defend silicosis cases by blaming the fabrication shop: dry cutting, poor ventilation, or no respirators. Knowing what the rules require helps you describe your own workplace accurately, which matters for your claim.

California's emergency standard, effective December 29, 2023, applies to cutting, grinding, polishing, and cleanup of artificial stone containing more than 0.1% crystalline silica and natural stone containing more than 10%. According to the Department of Industrial Relations, employers must use wet methods without exception, monitor air to confirm silica stays below the action level, and must not use compressed air, dry sweep, or rotate employees to reduce exposure. For respiratory protection, the standard calls for a full-face, tight-fitting powered air-purifying respirator or an equally protective alternative, with an organic vapor cartridge for artificial stonework in most cases, and supplied air respirators under certain conditions.

Many workers developed silicosis in shops that operated long before these rules, when dry cutting was common. That history is part of the evidence plaintiffs use to argue the slab makers should have designed safer products and given stronger warnings, since they knew how their slabs were being cut. Defendants argue the opposite: that the danger came from how shops handled the product.

When you talk to an attorney, be specific and accurate. Describe whether water was used on the saws, what masks were provided, whether dust hung in the air, how often you cleaned up dust, and whether anyone ever warned you. Coworkers who can confirm those conditions are valuable witnesses. Photos or videos of the shop, even old ones on a phone, can help. None of this reduces your right to seek compensation from the companies that made the slabs; it simply gives your lawyer the facts needed to answer the defense.

The damages in these cases are large because the injuries are severe. Accelerated silicosis can end a career in a worker's 30s or 40s, and Gonzalez's lawyers noted that transplanted lungs function for an average of about five years. Damages can include lifetime medical costs, including transplants, lost earnings for decades, and pain and suffering.

Two cautions. First, verdicts can be reduced after trial or on appeal, and fault allocation among many defendants can shrink what any one company pays. Second, most cases settle, and settlement amounts are usually confidential. Recoveries are also reduced by attorneys' fees, costs, and liens. See how long cases take.

Families of workers who died can pursue wrongful death damages, which in California can include the financial support the worker would have provided and the loss of love, companionship, and guidance. The Martinez Paredes verdict, brought by the family of a 41-year-old fabricator, shows how large those claims can be when a jury hears the full story.

California has a specific statute of limitations for toxic exposure. Under Code of Civil Procedure section 340.8, an injury suit based on exposure to a hazardous material or toxic substance must be filed within two years of the injury or two years after you become aware, or reasonably should have become aware, of the injury, its physical cause, and facts suggesting someone else's wrongdoing, whichever is later. The same section sets a separate rule for wrongful death claims.

In practice, the clock often starts at diagnosis. If you were diagnosed more than a year ago, talk to an attorney soon. Other states have their own deadlines, and workers who moved out of California may have claims in more than one place.

1. Get medical care and records. Ask your doctor about silicosis testing if you worked with engineered stone, and request copies of CT scans, lung function tests, and diagnoses.
2. Write your work history: every shop, years, tasks, and whether you cut dry or wet.
3. Identify slab brands. Coworkers, old photos, delivery labels, and shop invoices can all help.
4. Protect your lungs now. Avoid further dust exposure where possible, and follow up with a lung specialist regularly.
5. File for workers' compensation if you have not, since it can cover medical care and part of lost wages while a lawsuit is pending. A lawsuit against slab makers is separate and can be pursued at the same time.
6. Talk to an attorney about claims against slab makers. Many attorneys who handle these cases work with Spanish-speaking clients and families, so ask for an interpreter if you need one.

A free case review takes about two minutes. You can also read about mesothelioma and asbestos claims, another dust-related disease, or browse all lawsuits you may be able to join.