On September 23, 2026, a Manhattan judge rejected American Biltrite Inc.’s post-trial challenge to a mesothelioma verdict over its Amtico vinyl floor tile. The ruling left in place the jury’s $10 million award for past pain and suffering to a former flooring laborer. The company has appealed.
This asbestos floor tile lawsuit may interest anyone who installed, cut, sanded, or removed older vinyl tile at work or home. Whether an exposure supports a claim depends on the product, the work, the amount of exposure, the diagnosis, and the evidence.
The Verdict Against American Biltrite
The case is Widercrantz v. American Biltrite Inc. (Index No. 190118/2024), in New York County Supreme Court. Jon Widercrantz worked as a laborer for a flooring contractor from 1974 to 1977 and did freelance construction work from 1979 through 1988. He testified that he installed the company’s tile on about 200 workdays, scoring tiles with a utility knife, snapping them, and sanding the cut edges. He spent about 100 more days tearing out the company’s tile. He said he never saw a warning about the dangers of asbestos on the tiles or their boxes. (A December 2025 ruling in the case notes his earlier testimony that some tiles had “asbestos” written on the bottom.)
Mr. Widercrantz was diagnosed with mesothelioma in April 2024, and trial began on March 9, 2026. On April 6, the jury found that American Biltrite failed to warn about the asbestos and that its tile was defectively designed. It found that each was a substantial contributing factor in causing his disease. The jury awarded $10 million for past pain and suffering and $10 million for one year of future pain and suffering. The next day, it added $5 million in punitive damages. A jury’s award is not necessarily the amount entered in a judgment or ultimately paid.
Mr. Widercrantz died in July 2026, and his wife continued the case as temporary administrator of his estate. Justice Judy H. Kim then denied American Biltrite’s post-trial motion in its entirety. Because he died before the motion was submitted, the court limited its review of whether the damages were excessive to the past pain and suffering award. It cited New York authority stating that future pain and suffering damages not yet due at death are not recovered. The order does not separately discuss the $5 million punitive award. Mealey’s reported the ruling on October 5.
Proving Causation in New York
New York courts require two kinds of causation proof in toxic exposure cases. General causation means the substance can cause the disease. Specific causation means the person was exposed to enough of it to cause his or her illness.
Exposure does not always have to be measured exactly. In Parker v. Mobil Oil Corp. (2006), the Court of Appeals allowed generally accepted methods, such as modeling a work history or comparing it with exposure levels in other studies. It still affirmed the dismissal of that claim. In 2022, in Nemeth v. Brenntag North America, the same court reversed a talc-related mesothelioma verdict and dismissed the claim against the talc supplier. The plaintiff’s expert had not tied the woman’s exposure to levels known to cause the disease.
Floor Tile Cases Since Nemeth
On July 19, 2022, the Appellate Division, First Department, ruled for American Biltrite in three asbestos lung cancer cases involving Amtico tile. In Dyer v. Amchem Products Inc., the company relied on a study of workers cutting and snapping its tiles in an isolation chamber. The fiber levels it measured were far below what the company’s experts considered significant. The court held that exposure above background levels was not enough without a link to a dose that causes lung cancer.
In a 2024 mesothelioma case, Wagner v. Aerco International, Inc., a trial judge went the other way. The plaintiff testified that he had sanded the tiles with an electric belt sander, and the company’s study did not address sanding. The judge denied summary judgment, a ruling that would have ended the case without a trial.
In Widercrantz, the plaintiff’s industrial hygienist matched his tasks to studies that simulated floor tile installation and removal. He estimated a cumulative dose of 0.196 fiber-years, a measure that combines how much asbestos was in the air with how long the exposure lasted. A physician compared that dose with levels shown to cause disease in epidemiological studies and placed Mr. Widercrantz above them. Justice Kim held that this testimony established both general and specific causation. She distinguished Dyer, quoting the December 2025 ruling. Here, the physician explained how far above ambient levels exposure must be to cause disease. He also relied on case reports of floor tile workers who developed mesothelioma.
The design defect finding rested partly on the company’s own records. Its chief financial officer testified that American Biltrite made vinyl tile without asbestos throughout 1961 to 1985, the years it also made asbestos tile. A 1963 company catalog rated the non-asbestos tile equal or superior in every category compared. The court held that this showed a feasible safer design.
Long Island Workers and Homeowners
Long Island residents may bring asbestos claims in Nassau or Suffolk County Supreme Court or in New York City, depending on the facts. The Court of Appeals’ causation rules apply in all of them. In Pistone v. American Biltrite, Inc., a peritoneal mesothelioma case from Nassau County, the Appellate Division, Second Department, reversed summary judgment for American Biltrite and another flooring maker. The court, which hears appeals from Nassau and Suffolk courts, found that conflicting expert opinions raised questions for a jury. That 2021 decision came about a year before Nemeth.
Older Long Island homes and buildings may still have original vinyl flooring. The EPA lists vinyl floor tiles, the backing on vinyl sheet flooring, and adhesives among materials that may contain asbestos. Its guidance for households says to leave such material alone if it is in good condition and not to sand or level asbestos flooring. It also says removal should be done only by trained, accredited professionals.
If you or a family member did this kind of work, the details that mattered in Widercrantz are worth writing down now:
- The tasks. Scoring and snapping, cutting around fixtures, sanding edges, scraping, or tearing out old floors.
- How often and how long. Roughly how many days you did the work, and how many hours each day.
- Brand names. Mr. Widercrantz identified the tile from markings on the boxes and the name on the bottom of the tiles.
- Where and with whom. Employers, job sites, years, and coworkers who can confirm the work.
- Other possible exposures. Other jobs, products, military service, and household sources that may have involved asbestos. A complete history helps your lawyer evaluate the evidence and any other potential claims.
Our guide to asbestos claims in the construction trades covers other jobs with similar exposure. Filing deadlines depend on the facts of each case, so speak with a lawyer promptly after a diagnosis.
What Comes Next
American Biltrite has filed a notice of appeal from the September 23 order to the Appellate Division, First Department, which has not yet ruled. New York’s appellate courts have overturned asbestos verdicts on causation grounds before, including in Nemeth, so this ruling may not be the final word. Check the case’s current status before relying on it.
Speak With a New York Asbestos Lawyer
We review mesothelioma and lung cancer claims tied to asbestos floor tile and other building products. The attorneys at the Law Offices of Rudolph F.X. Migliore, P.C. can evaluate your potential claim at no cost. We work with co-counsel networks active in asbestos litigation and can help you understand whether you may have a claim and what records will be needed to move forward.
Call our Commack office at 631-543-3663 for a free, confidential case evaluation, or use our online contact form. There is no fee unless we recover compensation for you.
This article is for general informational purposes and is not legal advice, and it reflects information available as of its publication date; laws, regulations, and case developments change over time. Each case depends on its specific facts, and any filing deadline that may apply should be determined by an attorney. American Biltrite has contested these claims and has appealed the ruling discussed here. No outcome can be guaranteed in any litigation.