In November, I had the distinct pleasure of speaking at the DRI Asbestos Medicine conference about recent trends in asbestos litigation — specifically on claim filing trends and recent verdicts.

I was joined on a panel discussion by Mary McKelvey from Polsinelli and Carrie Lin and Chris Massenberg from MG&M. On the subject of filing trends, we discussed how general asbestos filings decreased by more than 10% from 2019 through 2022, but they have increased steadily since. In fact, if the trend holds this year, we expect filings to be greater than pre-pandemic (2019) levels. 

On another front, mesothelioma filings are very steady in recent years. It appears we can attribute the continual stream of mesothelioma filings to the inclusion of allegations to talc-related exposures. In 2019 only 13% of all mesothelioma claims included an allegation in the complaint related to talc. In 2024, more than a third of mesothelioma claims include a talc exposure allegation.

Talc exposure has changed the landscape of your “typical” asbestos plaintiff of older male shipyard or manufacturing worker to that of younger, often female, plaintiffs who were allegedly exposed to talc continually from a very young age. The talc-related lawsuits that go to trial, on average, have brought about very high verdicts in the last 12 months. From November 2023 through October 2024, there were 10 verdicts related to asbestos containing talc allegations. Plaintiffs won 80% of the time for a total of $492 million awarded — an average of about $65 million per plaintiff verdict. 

The panel discussed possible reasons why the talc verdicts are so large. This may be due to a few factors that make the talc trial more personal to the jurors:

• The jurors most likely used talcum powder of some type, or knew someone who did, and can see themselves getting sick.
• The talc is often used on babies and in people’s homes, which can be seen as a more sympathetic story than manufacturing/workplace exposure.
• Due to the prevalence of asbestos litigation, jurors today may be more likely to have a highly negative view toward asbestos than jurors in the past.

KCIC will continue to track and monitor filings and verdicts, and we will report back on additional trends. For the latest data and analysis, watch for our 2024 Asbestos Report to be released during the first quarter of 2025.