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Mealey's Toxic Torts

  • October 17, 2025

    Judge Amends Remand Order In Texas PFAS Case, Nixes Discretionary Stay

    DALLAS — A federal judge in Texas on Oct. 16 issued an amended opinion and order in the state of Texas’ per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) lawsuit against 3M Co. and several affiliates of E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co., staying its previous order remanding the case to state court for a limited period and declining to order a discretionary stay pending an appeal of the previous remand order.

  • October 17, 2025

    Amid ‘Incorrect’ Assertions, Firefighters’ Case Lacks Jurisdiction, DuPont Says

    NEW HAVEN, Conn. — E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co., which is now known as EIDP Inc., and its affiliates on Oct. 16 filed a reply brief in Connecticut federal court arguing that it should dismiss an injury lawsuit related to exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) brought by firefighters on grounds the plaintiffs have not established jurisdiction while making “incorrect factual assertions.”

  • October 16, 2025

    Mont. High Court: Pa. Law Applies To Reporter’s Subpoenaed Records On Tainted Water

    HELENA, Mont. — The Montana Supreme Court on Oct. 15 ruled that a lower court erred when it found that Montana’s Media Confidentiality Act (MMCA) applied to a reporter’s records that were the subject of a subpoena in litigation brought by a hydraulic fracturing company against a media outlet related to a news story about groundwater contamination from fracking operations that affected a family in Pennsylvania.  The high court reversed and remanded the matter, ruling that the lower court “must apply the Pennsylvania Shield Law and the qualified reporter’s privilege to the subpoena and determine whether all or some of the documents sought are privileged under Pennsylvania law.”

  • October 16, 2025

    City Says Its PFAS Case Does Not Belong In MDL For AFFF, Seeks Remand To Wisconsin

    CHARLESTON, S.C. — Wausau, Wis., has filed a reply brief in South Carolina federal court in support of its motion to remand the city’s lawsuit against the makers of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), arguing that the city’s claims under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) are asserted against only local defendants and that the case should not be included in the multidistrict litigation for the firefighting agent aqueous film forming foam (AFFF).

  • October 16, 2025

    AFFF Maker Says It Is Not Liable In Native American Tribe’s Tainted Water Case

    MINNEAPOLIS — Tyco Fire Products LP removed to Minnesota federal court a lawsuit brought by a Native American tribe that contends that the company is liable for groundwater contamination because it made the firefighting agent known as aqueous film forming foam (AFFF), which contains per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).  Tyco argues that it is not liable for any injury because the AFFF in question was manufactured according to rigorous specifications required by the U.S. government, and as a government contractor, Tyco insists that it is immune.

  • October 15, 2025

    3M: Government Contractor Defense Shields It From PFAS Liability In Water Case

    LUBBOCK, Texas — The 3M Co. has removed to Texas federal court a lawsuit brought by plaintiffs who contend that the makers of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have contaminated their drinking water.  In removing the case, 3M argues that under the federal government contractor defense recognized in Boyle v. United Technologies. Corp., it is immune from tort liability.

  • October 15, 2025

    Citing Potential Prejudice, Judge Denies DuPont A Stay In North Carolina PFAS Case

    FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — A North Carolina judge has denied a motion to stay litigation brought by the North Carolina attorney general against E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co. for contamination from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), ruling that “in contrast to what little prejudice may be felt by Moving Defendants if the case goes forward as planned, the prejudice felt if the stay is granted could potentially be large.”

  • October 14, 2025

    3M Claims Immunity From PFAS Liability Based On Government Contractor Defense

    NEW YORK — The 3M Co. has removed to New York federal court a lawsuit brought by plaintiffs who contend that their groundwater has been contaminated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) as a result of the use of the firefighting agent aqueous film forming foam (AFFF) at military bases. In removing the case, 3M argued that it is immune from tort liability pursuant to Boyle v. United Technologies. Corp. because it was acting as a government contractor.

  • October 14, 2025

    Roundup Wave 9 Plaintiffs Say Experts Should Be Admitted Based On Prior Rulings

    SAN FRANCISCO — The plaintiffs in the Wave 9 cases in the multidistrict litigation (MDL) for the herbicide Roundup on Oct. 13 filed a brief in California federal court opposing Monsanto Co.’s motion to exclude all of their general causation experts, arguing that, based on previous rulings by the court, their experts should be admitted.

  • October 14, 2025

    State Says MDL Court Should Remand MTBE Case To Pennsylvania

    NEW YORK — Pennsylvania has filed a reply brief in New York federal court arguing that the litigation over the continued saga related to alleged water contamination from methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) should be remanded to Pennsylvania federal court because “unless the entire case is remanded, two different courts will be simultaneously managing the case.”

  • October 13, 2025

    Derailment Class Counsel: Plaintiffs’ Motions Objecting To Settlement ‘Improper’

    YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — The class counsel in a lawsuit against railroad company Norfolk Southern Corp. related to the 2023 train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, filed a response brief on Oct. 10 in Ohio federal court arguing that the court should deny motions filed by two groups of plaintiffs seeking relief from an order granting final approval to a $600 million settlement, contending that the motions are “nothing more than an improper repetition of objections already overruled by the Court.”

  • October 10, 2025

    Plaintiffs: Monsanto’s Bid To Quash Deposition Violates Parties’ Agreement

    WILMINGTON, Del. — A couple suing Monsanto Co. alleging that the husband developed cancer from exposure to the herbicide Roundup filed a brief in Delaware state court arguing that Monsanto’s motion to quash their notice of deposition of a corporate representative for the company should be denied because “Monsanto has ignored Plaintiffs’ numerous attempts to schedule the deposition, strung Plaintiffs along for a year, violated their express agreement and they are now refusing to produce the requested corporate representative deposition.”

  • October 10, 2025

    Despite DOJ Funds Lapse, Hawaii Federal Judge Denies Stay In CWA Fuel Release Case

    HONOLULU — On the heels of a summary judgment motion denial, the U.S. Navy was unsuccessful in convincing a Hawaii federal judge to indefinitely stay proceedings in a Clean Water Act (CWA) discharge case due to a lapse in U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) funding appropriations because of the government shutdown, with the judge instead continuing a trial date for three months.

  • October 09, 2025

    Toxic Exposure, Contamination Suit Dismissed Following Parties’ Settlement

    GREENBELT, Md. — A Maryland federal judge dismissed consolidated suits stemming from an insurance coverage dispute for underlying toxic exposure and environmental contamination lawsuits after the parties settled all claims at issue.

  • October 09, 2025

    9th Circuit Denies Bid To Dismiss Appeal Of Ruling On Company’s Right To Drill

    SAN FRANCISCO — The clerk of the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has issued an order denying Ventura County’s motion to dismiss an appeal brought by an oil company seeking review of a lower court’s dismissal of the company’s claim for inverse condemnation in a dispute over a default judgment that nullified the company’s zoning clearance to conduct drilling operations.

  • October 08, 2025

    High Court Asks Insurer To Respond To Insured’s Petition In PFAS Exposure Suit

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court requested that an insurer file a response brief to an insured’s petition for a writ of certiorari seeking review of the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals’ finding that a district court erred in remanding a declaratory judgment claim and retaining jurisdiction over breach of contract and bad faith claims in a dispute over coverage for underlying per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure suits.

  • October 07, 2025

    U.S. Asked By High Court To Weigh In On Nuclear Waste Tort Liability Question

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on Oct. 6 asked the federal government to weigh in on a uranium processing company and its former owner’s petition for a writ of certiorari asking the court to decide whether dosing regulations for nuclear incidents provide the exclusive standard of care in public liability actions pursuant to the Price-Anderson Act (PAA).

  • October 06, 2025

    15 States Urge High Court To Accept Review Of Jurisdictional Issue In PFAS Suit

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court should grant certiorari to review an insured’s appeal of a Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals’ ruling that vacated a district court’s decision to remand a declaratory judgment claim and to retain jurisdiction over breach of contract and bad faith claims in a dispute over coverage for underlying per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure suits because the issue is one that divides the circuits, Ohio and 14 other states say in an Oct. 3 amicus curiae brief.

  • October 06, 2025

    Ohio Says Norfolk Southern Is Strictly Liable For Train Derailment Injuries

    YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — Ohio has moved in Ohio federal court for partial summary judgment that Norfolk Southern Corp. is strictly liable for discharging waste and toxins into the state’s air, land and water as a result of the train derailment that occurred in East Palestine, Ohio in 2023.  Separately, the state filed a response to Norfolk Southern’s motion for partial summary judgment, arguing that “the undisputed facts and applicable law are clear that Defendants are not entitled to summary judgment.”

  • October 06, 2025

    Supreme Court Refuses To Hear Companies’ Challenge To Paraquat Injury Ruling

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on Oct. 6 refused to hear a case brought by chemical companies that sought review of a ruling in a product liability case related to exposure to the pesticide paraquat on grounds that questions from the Supreme Court’s prior ruling in Mallory v. Norfolk Southern Railway Co. pertaining to the commerce clause and the scope of due process limits remain unresolved.  The companies maintained that their case was “the necessary sequel to Mallory.”

  • October 02, 2025

    Government Says Minor Bellwether Plaintiffs Lack Jurisdiction In Flint Case

    ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The U.S. government has filed a brief in Michigan federal court arguing that it should dismiss the claims of three minor bellwether plaintiffs for lack of subject matter jurisdiction in the litigation over the lead-contaminated water crisis in Flint, Mich., because the claims do not satisfy the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) requirement that a private person would be liable under Michigan’s Good Samaritan Doctrine.

  • October 02, 2025

    White House Council Issues NEPA Guidance To ‘Expedite’ Permitting Process

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — The White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) has released guidance and a template for implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which aim to “expedite and simplify the permitting process” in keeping with President Donald J. Trump’s executive order titled “Unleashing American Energy.”  The guidance replaces previous guidance and takes into account the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County.

  • October 02, 2025

    Ga. Federal Judge Grants, Denies Class Certification In Drinking Water PFAS Case

    ROME, Ga. — A federal judge in Georgia granted class certification to a group of Summerville, Ga., water and sewer subscribers and ratepayers as part of a proposed “Damages Class” for past rate increases caused by toxic per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in their groundwater but denied certification for future increases and denied certification of a proposed “Injunction Class” in a lawsuit seeking damages for several chemical manufacturers’ involvement in the contamination.

  • October 01, 2025

    Judge Nixes PFAS Carpet Case Against 3M, DuPont, Says Allegations Not ‘Adequate’

    MINNEAPOLIS — A federal judge in Minnesota on Sept. 30 dismissed a class action against the 3M Co., E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. and DuPont affiliates, ruling that the complaint “does not include adequate factual allegations” that the plaintiffs’ injuries were connected to the defendants’ alleged awareness of the health risks posed by stain-repellent products containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that the companies made and sold to carpet manufacturers and others.

  • October 01, 2025

    Judge Says PFAS Case Against Coca-Cola Fails For Lack Of Standing

    NEW YORK — A federal judge in New York has dismissed a lawsuit alleging that various fruit drinks made by the Coca-Cola Co. contain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), ruling that the plaintiff lacks standing because he failed to establish that the products he submitted to a laboratory for independent testing were the actual physical products he had purchased.