Court Says Tenn. Couple Waited Too Long to Sue Temple Inland Over Workplace Silica Exposure

COLUMBIA, Tenn. – A federal judge has dismissed silica claims brought by a Tennessee couple against TIN Inc., the husband's employer, saying the claims are time-barred because the accidental exposure was apparent more than three years before the case was filed.

U.S. District Court Chief Judge William J. Haynes Jr. said Jan. 30 in granting the defendant employer's motion to dismiss that Tennessee's discovery doctrine did not apply because a precise medical diagnosis is not required before personal injury claims accrue.

Plaintiff Andrew Davis filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee in August 2013, …