Mealey's Toxic Torts
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April 18, 2022
Judge Refuses To Disqualify Flint Attorney, Says Ethics Violation ‘Short-Lived’
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — A federal judge in Michigan on April 15 denied a motion to disqualify a plaintiff attorney in the Flint water crisis litigation, ruling that although it is likely that the attorney violated relevant ethical rules, the conflict of interest generated by his representation of plaintiffs who objected to the partial settlement in the litigation was “short-lived” and did not ultimately affect any of his other clients.
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April 15, 2022
Residents Seek Remand Of Water Pollution Case, Say Federal Jurisdiction Lacking
MACON, Ga. — Plaintiffs who say they have been injured from exposure to coal ash from a power plant on April 5 moved in Georgia federal court to remand to state court on grounds that the defendants improperly removed the case under the Price-Anderson Amendments Act of 1988 (PAA) by claiming that removal was warranted because the power plant’s process contains uranium and, therefore, the claims arise from a “nuclear incident.”
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April 15, 2022
Couple Says Paraquat Makers Concealed Risks, Are Liable For Parkinson’s Disease
EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill. — A couple sued the makers of the pesticide paraquat on April 8 in Illinois federal court contending that the companies are liable for the husband’s development of Parkinson’s disease because they “knowingly, affirmatively, and actively concealed” the serious risks associated with the use of or exposure to paraquat.
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April 15, 2022
5th Circuit Remands, Says Basis For Dismissing Case Is ‘Problematic’
NEW ORLEANS — A panel of the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on April 12 partially remanded claims in a chemical exposure case against E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. and others, ruling that the district court’s basis for dismissing the case was “problematic” because it relied on its previous ruling in a case that was similar, but not identical, to the one at hand.
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April 15, 2022
Woman: Chicken Processing Plant Liable For Daughter’s Death From Toxic Exposure
GEORGETOWN, Del. — A Maryland woman sued a chicken processing plant in Delaware state court on March 17 contending that it is liable for the wrongful death of her daughter after she was overcome by exposure to peroxyacetic acid (PAA) and polyphosphoric acid (PPA) while conducting an inspection of the facility during her employment with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
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April 15, 2022
Judge Nixes Case Against Financial Institutions Related To Flint Water Crisis
DETROIT — A federal judge in Michigan on March 29 dismissed a lawsuit against three financial institutions in the ongoing litigation related to the lead-contaminated water crisis in the city of Flint that had been sued for their roles in underwriting a municipal bond sale related to the city’s move to change its water supply source, which resulted in the contamination at issue. The judge ruled that the decision to change the water source was made by elected officials, not banks.
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April 14, 2022
Monsanto Actively Concealed Glyphosate’s Dangers, Caused Cancer, Couple Says
WILMINGTON, Del. — A husband and wife on April 11 sued Monsanto Co. in Delaware state court contending that it is liable for causing the wife to develop cancer because Monsanto knowingly concealed information about the serious risks associated with the herbicide Roundup and its active ingredient glyphosate, which the couple says has been revealed as a carcinogen by independent scientific analysis.
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April 14, 2022
Companies: Cancer Victim Fails To Allege Specific Duty In Chemical Exposure Case
NEW ORLEANS — Two chemical companies moved in Louisiana federal court on April 12 to dismiss a cancer victim’s ethylene oxide (EtO) exposure case, arguing that the precedent of the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals “makes clear” that a plaintiff must allege one or more violations of a specific, identifiable duty, which the plaintiff has failed to do.
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April 13, 2022
PFAS Class Certification ‘Begs For Immediate Review,’ Companies Tell 6th Circuit
CINCINNATI — Two chemical companies on April 7 filed a brief in the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals supporting 3M Co.’s appeal seeking interlocutory review of a class certification order in in aqueous film forming foam (AFFF) litigation, arguing that the order is in no way “premature” and it “begs for immediate review.”
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April 13, 2022
Chemours: Investors ‘Facts’ Do Not Support Reconsideration In PFAS Securities Case
WILMINGTON, Del. — The Chemours Co. on April 6 filed a sur-reply brief in Delaware federal court arguing that plaintiffs who allege that the company falsely understated its maximum potential environmental remediation liabilities related to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) misstate generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), and their purported facts cannot support reconsideration of a state court’s order that limited the scope of the litigation.
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April 13, 2022
Panel Transfers Pennsylvania And Colorado PFAS Cases To MDL For Aqueous Foam
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPMDL) on April 11 transferred three cases to the MDL for aqueous film forming foams (AFFF), including a case filed by a Pennsylvania municipality and one filed by the state of Colorado, which contend that per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), active ingredients in AFFF, have contaminated their respective water supplies.
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April 13, 2022
Split Texas Appeals Panel: Water Pollution Claim Barred By Statute Of Limitations
HOUSTON — A split appellate panel in Texas on April 12 affirmed summary judgment dismissal of a groundwater contamination lawsuit against an oil and gas drilling company on grounds that the statute of limitations had run on the claim filed by the landowners who sought to hold the company liable for pollution.
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April 13, 2022
Glyphosate Cancer Victim Sues Monsanto For ‘Full Knowledge’ Of Roundup’s Dangers
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — A cancer victim on April 12 sued Monsanto Co. in Puerto Rico federal court contending that its “negligent and wrongful conduct” related to the manufacture and sale of the herbicide Roundup, which contains that active ingredient glyphosate, caused her injury. She also argues that Monsanto had “full knowledge of its dangerous and defective nature.”
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April 13, 2022
City In Georgia Intervenes In PFAS Drinking Water Pollution Case Seeking Remedies
ATLANTA — A city in Georgia on March 30 filed an intervenor complaint in Georgia federal court joining a lawsuit alleging that the 3M Co. and others are liable for contaminating drinking water with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and contending that the companies knew of the toxicity of PFAS for decades.
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April 12, 2022
Companies Challenge Order Limiting Government Contractor Defense In AFFF MDL
CHARLESTON, S.C. — A group of defendants referring to themselves as “non-bellwehther foam manufacturers” in the multidistrict litigation for liability related to the firefighting agent known as aqueous film forming foam (AFFF) on April 11 moved in South Carolina federal court for reconsideration of a case management order that allows primary defendants to file briefs on what is referred to as the government contractor defense related to their manufacture of AFFF but allows other defendants the right to make that argument only “if deemed necessary by the Court.”
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March 28, 2022
Appellate Panel Affirms Dismissal Of Injury Case On Limitations Grounds
HOUSTON — A Texas appellate panel on March 24 affirmed a lower court’s ruling dismissing a cancer victim’s chemical injury lawsuit against a chemical company, arguing that he failed to show that he had a latent disease and that the statute of limitations barred his claim.
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March 28, 2022
Parkinson’s Victim: Companies ‘Deliberately Concealed’ Paraquat’s Dangers
EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill. — A man with Parkinson’s disease sued the makers of the pesticide paraquat in Illinois federal court on March 22, contending that they are liable for his injury because they “deliberately concealed” the dangers of paraquat and “knowingly unleashed” a product that they knew caused his specific disease.
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March 28, 2022
Insurers Failed To Prove Insured Expected Harm Resulting From Lead Paint
NEW YORK — A New York appellate court on March 24 affirmed a trial court’s denial of motions for summary judgment filed by numerous insurers seeking a declaration that no coverage is owed for an underlying lead paint judgment entered against their insured, agreeing with the trial court’s determination that the insurers failed to meet their burden of proving that the insured expected or intended the harm that resulted from the use of its lead-contaminated paints.
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March 25, 2022
PFAS Makers Remove Case, Claim Immunity From Liability As ‘Government Contractors’
PHILADELPHIA — On March 24, two companies removed to Pennsylvania federal court a lawsuit alleging contamination from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), arguing that not only does the case belong in federal court, but also based on the “government contractor” defense recognized by the U.S. Supreme Court, they are immune to tort liability.
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March 25, 2022
Chemours: Reconsideration Of PFAS Ruling In Securities Case Is Not Warranted
WILMINGTON, Del. — The Chemours Co. on March 23 filed a brief in Delaware federal court contending that the district court’s ruling, which limited the scope of the litigation against it related to claims that the company falsely understated its maximum potential environmental remediation liabilities pertaining to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) when it filed documents with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, was correct and that reconsideration is not needed.