Madison and St. Clair Counties again saw the most asbestos case filings for 2023 nationwide, and Cook County saw the highest increase in filings according to a report by KCIC, a Washington D.C.-based technology and management consulting company.
“KCIC’s analyses for 2023 showed that the general trends observed in recent years continued. Asbestos filings were 2% higher in 2023 than in 2022 — a difference of less than 100 lawsuits,” the report states. “Mesothelioma and lung cancer filings continued to make up nearly 90% of total filings and filings for both diseases increased in 2023. The litigation continued to be overwhelmingly concentrated in Illinois, particularly in Madison County, with a relatively small number of plaintiff firms filing most of these lawsuits.”
KCIC’s data collection began in 2014, so this year’s analysis includes 10 full years of publicly available data. With a decade worth of information, the report breaks down asbestos case filings for 2023 as well as showing litigation trends over the past 10 years.
“When analyzing the decade of data, there were 6-8% decreases in filings per year until 2020, when the numbers leveled out, with smaller increases or decreases of only a few percentage points each year,”the report states. “Another shift has been towards fewer jurisdictions and fewer plaintiff firms, while the average number of defendants per complaint has increased.
“Over time, the disease mix in filings has also shifted,” it continued. “When asbestos litigation first began, cases were mostly mesothelioma and non-malignant. As time went on and the proofs of injury required by courts changed, there has been a shift away from the non-malignant cases to the malignancies — specifically mesothelioma and lung cancer.”
KCIC’s report reflects data received through Jan. 31, 2024. The consulting firm processed at least 90 percent of all complaints alleging personal injuries due to asbestos exposure. KCIC processed 3,787 complaints filed in 2023 nationwide, which is nearly 90 more lawsuits than 2022.
Despite a 7.7% drop in filings last year, Madison County maintained its reputation as the nation’s epicenter of asbestos litigation with 905 asbestos case filings. Madison County’s decrease in filings was the most significant.
Madison County saw 60 fewer mesothelioma lawsuits filed in 2023 compared to 2022, representing the decrease. There were also 10 fewer lung cancer cases filed.
“The decrease in mesothelioma filings in Madison County was due mostly to fewer filings by Maune Raichle Hartley French & Mudd (19% decrease) and by The Gori Law FIrm (8% decrease),” the report states. “The decrease in Madison County lung cancer filings was mostly attributable to the Simmons Hanly Conroy, SWMW Law, and Napoli Shkolnik firms each filing fewer cases there.”
More specifically, Simmons Hanly Conroy decreased its lung cancer filings in Madison County by 82% with SWMW decreasing its lung cancer filings by 72%. Both firms maintained their mesothelioma claims. Napoli Shkolnik has not filed any mesothelioma lawsuits in Madison County since 2020, and it decreased its lung cancer filings 45 in 2023.
St. Clair County saw a 10.5 percent increase in asbestos case filings with a total of 591 new cases, bringing it to the second most popular jurisdiction.
“St. Clair County was the most common locale for lung cancer filings in 2023 and had the largest nominal increase in filings in 2023 (56 additional lawsuits),” the report states. “This jurisdiction saw an 11% increase in lung cancer filings (521 to 576) in 2023 compared to 2022. The plaintiff firms with the largest increases in lung cancer filings in St. Clair County were The Gori Law Firm (389 to 411) and Flint Cooper (37 to 69).”
Other local jurisdictions included on the list of top asbestos hotspots were St. Louis and Cook County. St. Louis was ranked number six on the list with 168 asbestos case filings after a 20.9% increase over 2022. Cook County was ranked number seven on the list with 156 asbestos case filings after a 41.8% increase over 2022.
The increase in case filings in Cook County was the highest out of any county included on the list of the top 15 jurisdictions.
“Cook County had the largest percentage increase in filings in 2023, with total filings increasing 46% from 110 to 156,” the report states. “Filings for all major disease types increased in Cook County in 2023 compared to 2022. Mesothelioma filings increased 25% (67 to 84), lung cancer filings increased 69% (32 to 54), and non-malignant filings increased 75% (8-14).”
Both Madison and St. Clair Counties saw similar case filings by disease over the 10 year period analyzed in the report, although the percentages did increase. Madison County’s filings were 81% mesothelioma in 2014 and 87% in 2023. However, the number of those mesothelioma claims still decreased from 2022 to 2023.
“Madison County, Illinois is consistently the jurisdiction with the most mesothelioma filings - comprising 41% of all mesothelioma lawsuits filed in 2023,” the report states. “Although this jurisdiction had the largest nominal decrease in mesothelioma filings out of all of the jurisdictions (from 847 to 787), there were still more than five times as many mesothelioma lawsuits filed there as the next highest jurisdiction.”
Neighboring St. Clair County saw 95% lung cancer filings in 2014 and 98% in 2023, and it still saw a 10.6% increase in lung cancer filings from 2022.
“St. Clair County had the largest nominal increase, with 55 more lung cancer cases in 2023 than in 2022,” the report states. “The increase was mostly due to increased filings by Flint Cooper and The Gori Law Firm.”
As mesothelioma claims in Madison County increased slightly over the 10 year period, lung cancer filings decreased from 17.9% in 2014 to 12.8% in 2023.
As lung cancer claims in St. Clair County increased slightly during that same time period, mesothelioma claims decreased from 4.8% in 2014 to just 1% in 2023.
The Gori Law Firm in Edwardsville topped KCIC”s charts for asbestos plaintiff firms in 2023 with a 10.5% increase over 2022. The firm increased its filings in Madison and St. Clair Counties as well as St. Louis.
“The Gori Law Firm continued to file the most lawsuits and, with 757 lawsuits, filed more than twice as many lawsuits as the next highest plaintiff firm in 2023,” the report states.
Also of Edwardsville, Flint Cooper saw a 51% increase in case filings from 2022 to 2023. This increase comes after a 62% decrease in filings from 2021 to 2022.
“The firm files mostly lung cancer cases in St. Clair County and increased those filings 92% (36 filings to 69 filings) in 2023 compared to 2022. In 2023, Flint Cooper began filing with the Law Office of Christopher Cueto as local counsel for lung cancer cases in St. Clair County. The Law Office of Christopher Cueto appeared on 68% of 2023 cases and had not filed any asbestos lawsuits in the prior 10 years.”
Napoli Shkolnik of Edwardsville was noted for its 39% decrease in asbestos filings. The firm filed lung cancer cases mostly in Madison County and New Castle, Delaware, but decreased its filings in both jurisdictions.
Simmons Hanly Conroy in Alton ranked number three on the list despite its 5.2% drop from 2022 case filings. The firm primarily files mesothelioma claims in Madison County.