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Mealey's Toxic Torts

  • July 03, 2025

    Plaintiffs Cross Appeal As Monsanto Challenges $75M PCB Punitive Damages Award

    SEATTLE — Plaintiffs who won a $75 million punitive damages award that was part of a combined verdict of $100 million for injuries from exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls(PCBs) at a Seattle area school have filed notice of a cross-appeal in Washington state court, seeking cross-review of the final judgment and other rulings, in response to Monsanto’s appeal of the verdict.

  • July 03, 2025

    Water Authority Says U.S. Government, Navy Liable For PFAS Pollution Of Aquifer

    HONOLULU — A municipal water authority has sued the U.S. government in Hawaii federal court, contending that the government and the U.S. Department of the Navy are liable for tortious conduct by allowing or causing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) to be released into an aquifer that the water authority relies on to provide drinking water for residents.

  • July 02, 2025

    Judge Partly Dismisses Claims Over PFAS In ‘Natural Mouthwash’

    NEW YORK — A New York federal magistrate judge on July 1 ordered parties to meet and confer over the future schedule for litigation after a district court judge partly dismissed putative class action claims against two consumer products companies for allegedly deceiving consumers and violating California’s unfair competition law (UCL) by selling a “natural mouthwash” product that is alleged to contain PFAS.

  • July 02, 2025

    Procter & Gamble Says PFAS Dental Floss Case Fails For Lack Of Injury, Standing

    NEW YORK — Procter & Gamble Co. (P&G) on July 1 filed a reply brief in New York federal court arguing that a putative class action filed against it alleging that its dental floss contains per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) should be dismissed because the plaintiff’s brief opposing the motion to dismiss “does not seriously contest his lack of standing based on his regular purchases” of dental floss after commencing the lawsuit and, therefore, there is a “lack of any genuine injury upon which to premise his claims.”

  • July 02, 2025

    Vermont High Court Partially Reverses, Says PFAS Water Pollution Claims Valid

    MONTPELIER, Vt. — The Vermont Supreme Court has partially affirmed and partially reversed plaintiffs’ claims against Burlington, Vt., for contamination of their drinking water and property from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the firefighting agent aqueous film forming foam (AFFF), finding that the U.S. government and the National Guard were not necessary parties for the claims, which alleged that the pollution came from activities at Burlington International Airport. The Supreme Court said the case “has to do with what defendant did or did not do to limit the damage by containing the runoff from the foams on its own property,” therefore many of the claims were valid.

  • July 02, 2025

    DuPont Affiliates Seek Dismissal Of PFAS Drinking Water Case Based On Jurisdiction

    BOSTON — EIDP Inc. and affiliates of E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co. have filed a motion in Massachusetts federal court seeking to dismiss a consolidated class complaint for drinking water contamination from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), arguing that the plaintiffs cannot satisfy their burden of establishing that the district court has jurisdiction.

  • July 01, 2025

    Evidence Lacking For Most Focus Sites In State’s MTBE Pollution Case, Judge Says

    NEW YORK — A federal judge in New York on June 30 granted, with a single exception, a motion for partial summary judgment filed by CITGO Petroleum Corp. and one of its affiliates, which argued that Pennsylvania lacks evidence that shows an “identifiable connection” between CITGO and focus sites where there is contamination from methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE). The judge said the evidence presented by the state failed to raise a triable issue for all but one of the sites in question.

  • July 01, 2025

    Hershey: Lawsuit Over Alleged PFAS In Its Chocolate Is ‘Built On A House Of Cards’

    HARRISBURG, Pa. — The Hershey Co. has filed a motion in Pennsylvania federal court to dismiss a putative class action against it which alleges that certain Hershey’s chocolate candies contain “heightened levels of dangerous, unsafe organic fluorine” and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), arguing that the case is “built on a house of cards.”

  • July 01, 2025

    Government Seeks Appeal Of Flint FTCA Discretionary Function Exception Ruling

    DETROIT — The U.S. government has moved in Michigan federal court seeking certification of an interlocutory appeal of that court’s denial of the government’s motion to dismiss the Flint water crisis Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) lawsuit pursuant to the discretionary function exception (DFE). The government seeks to appeal the ruling, which held that the DFE is inapplicable to the “actions and inactions” of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in response to the Flint water crisis, contending that the decision involves controlling questions of law and that an immediate appeal “may materially advance the ultimate termination of the litigation.”

  • June 30, 2025

    Supreme Court Seeks Solicitor General’s View On Monsanto’s Roundup Damages Appeal

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on June 30 invited the U.S. solicitor general to file a brief expressing the views of the U.S. government in a case brought by Monsanto Co., which is challenging a $1.25 million damages award for injuries from exposure to the herbicide Roundup.  Monsanto contends that “there is an open and acknowledged split as to whether [the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act] FIFRA preempts state-law failure-to-warn claims based on the content of pesticide product labels.”

  • June 30, 2025

    $38M Settlement In Securities Case Tied To Roundup Litigation Gets Initial OK

    SAN FRANCISCO — A federal judge in California on June 27 granted preliminary approval to a $38 million proposed settlement in a securities fraud class action against Bayer AG, the parent company of Monsanto Co., related to statements it made about Monsanto’s science-based trial defenses in Roundup litigation. The judge said the court will likely be able to finally approve the settlement under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(e)(2) as being “fair, reasonable, and adequate to the Class.”

  • June 19, 2025

    PFAS Makers’ ‘Conscious Disregard’ For Health Warrants Damages, Plaintiffs Say

    LOS ANGELES — Dozens of individuals have sued 3M Co., E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co. and other makers of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in California state court, contending that they are liable for “fraud, oppression, or malice” because they showed “conscious and/or reckless disregard” when they produced PFAS for use in aqueous film forming foam (AFFF), which they say contaminates drinking water when used to fight chemical fires.

  • June 19, 2025

    Monsanto’s Roundup Preemption Theory ‘Deeply Flawed,’ Woman Tells Supreme Court

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — The respondent in one of three separate-but-related petitions for certiorari filed by Monsanto Co. in the U.S. Supreme Court on the issue of preemption of claims related to the herbicide Roundup under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) filed a brief on June 18 arguing that the court should deny the petition because Monsanto’s theory is “deeply flawed” and that the reasons for denial are the same as in the companion case Monsanto Co. v. Durnell. In that case, John L. Durnell, who was awarded $1.25 million in damages, argues that Monsanto’s petition “presents one company’s attempt to avoid further tort claims. And no company is less deserving of such sweeping immunity than Monsanto.”

  • June 19, 2025

    Agency To Allocate $10M For Research Into Health Impact Of Ohio Train Derailment

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — In the aftermath of the chemical releases in East Palestine, Ohio, following the derailment of a train operated by Norfolk Southern Railway Corp., the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) on June 19 announced a plan to allocate up to $10 million over five years to fund awards to organizations to conduct a research study of long-term health concerns related to the chemical exposure in the community.

  • June 18, 2025

    Monsanto Says School District Not Entitled To Additional Depositions Of Witnesses

    BURLINGTON, Vt. — Monsanto Co. filed a reply brief in Vermont federal court on June 17, arguing that a school district’s opposition to the company’s motion to quash the district’s Rule 30(b)(6) notice for deposition and motion for a protective order fails. Monsanto also contends that the district has already been given a “full and fair opportunity to explore” the topics about which it seeks information in its current notice of deposition.

  • June 18, 2025

    High Court Has ‘Every Reason’ To Hear Roundup Damages Appeal, Monsanto Says

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — Monsanto Co. has filed a reply brief in the U.S. Supreme Court contending that “there is an open and acknowledged split as to whether [the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act] FIFRA preempts state-law failure-to-warn claims based on the content of pesticide product labels,” therefore there is “every reason for this Court to grant certiorari” in Monsanto’s challenge to a $1.25 million damages award for injuries from exposure to the herbicide Roundup.

  • June 17, 2025

    Companies Say Pennsylvania Lacks Evidence Connecting Them To MTBE Contamination

    NEW YORK — CITGO Petroleum Corp. and one of its affiliates have filed a summary judgment reply brief in New York federal court arguing that Pennsylvania lacks evidence that shows an “identifiable connection” between CITGO and focus sites where there is contamination from methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE).

  • June 16, 2025

    3 Lawsuits Seek Damages From Carpet Makers, Chemical Companies For PFAS Pollution

    LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. — Three groups of individuals filed separate lawsuits against carpet manufacturers and chemical companies in Georgia state court on June 13 alleging that they are liable for contaminating groundwater, air and soil with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). In one complaint, which is indicative of the others, Jamie Cordle and others say that their properties, which are in the same watershed, are “bombarded constantly” by the defendants’ toxic chemicals.

  • June 13, 2025

    City, Water Board Seek Punitive Damages And Costs To Remove PFAS From Water

    WHEELING, W.Va. — A city and its water authority have sued multiple companies in West Virginia federal court under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) seeking to recover the costs associated with removing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that have tainted the local sources of drinking water.

  • June 13, 2025

    Woman With Parkinson’s Disease Says Paraquat Makers Knew It Was ‘Highly Toxic’

    EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill. — A woman with Parkinson’s disease has sued the makers of the pesticide paraquat in Illinois federal court arguing that they are liable for her injury and contending that “Defendants knew or, in the exercise of reasonable care, should have known that Paraquat was a highly toxic substance that can cause severe neurological injuries and impairment.”

  • June 13, 2025

    ‘Reasonable Juror’ Could Find Former Official Liable For Tainted Water, Panel Says

    DETROIT — A Michigan Court of Appeals panel has affirmed a trial court’s decision against the former director of the Benton Harbor Water Department in a groundwater contamination lawsuit, ruling that a “reasonable juror could conclude that he was the most immediate, efficient, and direct cause of plaintiffs' injuries.”

  • June 13, 2025

    Couple Seeks Damages For Kids’ Lead Poisoning Caused By Living In National Park

    CHEYENNE, Wyo. — A that couple has sued the U.S. government in Wyoming federal court contending that while they were living in government housing related to the husband’s employment at Yellowstone National Park, their two children developed lead poisoning.  The couple says the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) is liable for money damages for personal injury under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA).

  • June 12, 2025

    Man Alleges Monsanto Caused His Cancer, Says Roundup’s Ingredients Are Toxic

    ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A man sued Monsanto Co. on June 11 in New Mexico federal court contending that he developed cancer from exposure to the herbicide Roundup and that Roundup’s ingredients, glyphosate and the surfactant polyethoxylated tallow amine (POEA), are more toxic that glyphosate alone.  He also argues that Monsanto knew, or should have known, that safety studies were necessary to protect him from Roundup.

  • June 12, 2025

    Georgia Federal Judge Approves More Settlements In Drinking Water PFAS Case

    ROME, Ga. —  A large textile mill operator, the town where it operates and one of its product manufacturers will pay more than $1.25 million to a group of water subscribers and ratepayers for their admitted involvement in contaminating groundwater in a northwest region of Georgia with toxic per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) through partial class action settlements granted final approval on June 11 by a federal judge.

  • June 12, 2025

    Panel Reverses, Says Plaintiff May Not Seek Punitive Damages Against Monsanto

    MIAMI — A Florida appellate panel on June 11 reversed a trial court and held that a plaintiff who sued Monsanto Co. alleging injuries related to exposure to the herbicide Roundup cannot seek punitive damages because “punitive damages are reserved for truly culpable and egregious behavior,” and the evidence falls short of supporting a claim for those kind of damages.