Imerys Talc America Inc., along with Imerys Talc Vermont Inc. and Imerys Talc Canada Inc., recently announced that they have made a determination to initiate voluntary Chapter 11 cases in Delaware. The filing companies reportedly reached this decision after evaluating a range of strategies to safeguard their long-term business interests and address their historic talc-related liabilities in the U.S.
The Chapter 11 process will reportedly allow the filing companies the time and protection to negotiate a global agreement with creditors, primarily representatives of current and future claimants in cosmetic talc-related litigation, while defining a path forward for the impacted talc businesses. The filing companies are operating as usual throughout the Chapter 11 process. They will continue to deliver products to customers and intend to meet obligations to employees and trade partners while maintaining a focus on safety. The Chapter 11 filing immediately suspends all outstanding U.S. talc-related litigation against the filing companies. As a result, it is expected that normal operating cash flow will be sufficient to satisfy all of the filing entities’ operating obligations during this period.
“This is an important, meaningful, strategic step for our business,” said Giorgio La Motta, president of Imerys Talc America, Imerys Talc Vermont, and Imerys Talc Canada. “After carefully evaluating all possible options, we determined that pursuing Chapter 11 protection is the best course of action to address our historic talc-related liabilities and position the filing companies for continued growth. The safety of talc has been confirmed by dozens of peer-reviewed studies, as well as regulatory and scientific bodies, and the litigation is entirely without merit. However, it is simply not in the best interests of our stakeholders to litigate these claims in perpetuity and incur millions of dollars in projected legal costs to defend these cases. By deciding to file for Chapter 11 protection, we have laid the groundwork to efficiently resolve our historic talc-related liabilities and focus on our continued success in the industry.”
The filing companies report that they will continue to work toward an efficient resolution and expect to emerge in the first half of 2020. Additional information about the Chapter 11 cases can be found at https://cases.primeclerk.com/imerystalc.
