Mealey's Toxic Torts : Mealey's : Legal News & Analysis

Mealey's Toxic Torts

September 23, 2025
Split Michigan Appeals Panel Rules In 3M’s Favor Again On PFAS Water Rules

LANSING, Mich. — In an unpublished per curiam opinion, a divided Michigan appellate panel has affirmed a trial court’s order for the second time in favor of 3M Co., ruling that the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) violated the state’s Administrative Procedures Act (MAPA) when it issued new rules for permissible levels of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in drinking water without preparing a regulatory impact statement (RIS) that includes an estimate of how much compliance with the proposed rules will cost “businesses and other groups.” The per curiam opinion came after the Michigan Supreme Court remanded the case with instructions to address a specific question that was unanswered in the panel’s previous divided opinion.
September 23, 2025
Man With Silicosis: Stone Countertop Makers, Sellers Concealed Product’s Dangers

SAN FRANCISCO — A former cutter, fabricator and/or installer of quartz countertops, who has developed silicosis and pulmonary fibrosis, has sued multiple parties in the California Superior Court alleging they are liable for his injuries because they were negligent and fraudulently concealed the fact that the stone products in question were toxic and that they contained silica as well as other toxins that cause fibrotic lung disease.
September 22, 2025
Insured Says Insurer Owes Additional Coverage For Underlying Silica Lawsuits

NEW YORK — An insured filed counterclaims against its insurer in New York federal court, seeking declarations that the insurer has a continued duty to defend and indemnify the insured in underlying silica bodily injury lawsuits and further seeking declarations that the underlying lawsuits constitute multiple occurrence and that a pro rata method of allocation applies.
September 22, 2025
Monsanto’s Bid To Dismiss Roundup Cancer Wrongful Death Case Fails, Widow Says

SAN FRANCISCO — A widow who is suing Monsanto Co. filed a brief in California federal court on Sept. 19 arguing that it should deny Monsanto’s motion for summary judgment on causation in a lawsuit alleging that the herbicide caused a man’s cancer and eventual death because she has provided information about expert testimony expected to be provided in the case.
September 19, 2025
Panel Upholds Monsanto Win In Trial Over PCBs And Roundup, Despite Potential Bias

CHICAGO — In an unpublished opinion, an Illinois state appeals court on Sept. 18 affirmed a lower court’s decision in favor of Monsanto Co. in a lawsuit brought by people who claimed that they were injured as a result of using the herbicide Roundup and through exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), ruling that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in a series of procedural decisions it made, one of which was to retain a juror despite allegations of bias.
September 19, 2025
EPA Upholds PFAS CERCLA Designation, Wants Abeyance Lifted In D.C. Circuit Case

WASHINGTON, D.C. — After months of review, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency decided to uphold a final rule that added two widely used per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) to the list of hazardous substances covered by the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act and wants briefing to commence in a series of consolidated petitions filed in a federal circuit court by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and six trade associations against the designation.
September 19, 2025
Oil Company Says Court Lacks Jurisdiction Over Plaintiffs In PFAS Water Lawsuit

WHEELING, W.Va. — A defendant in a lawsuit seeking to recover the costs associated with removing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that have tainted local sources of drinking water under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) on Sept. 18 moved in West Virginia federal court to dismiss the case, arguing that the plaintiffs have failed to offer sufficient allegations establishing grounds for the court to constitutionally exercise general or specific personal jurisdiction.
September 18, 2025
Study Shows Groundwater Was Affected By Fracking Overflow Incident In Pennsylvania

PITTSBURGH — In a study published Sept. 17, researchers at Pittsburgh-based universities have found that evidence related to a “frac-out” event in 2022 in western Pennsylvania resulted in “oil and gas brine contributions to water chemistries as well as fugitive methane with 62% of the well water samples” and geospatial analysis determined that the extent of the water contamination was wider than initially reported.
September 17, 2025
3M Says Firefighter’s PFAS Cancer Case Is Barred By Federal Contractor Defense

ST. LOUIS — In its notice of removal filed Sept. 16 in Missouri federal court, 3M Co. argues that a lawsuit brought by a firefighter alleging that per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in protective gear is responsible for causing his cancer is barred by the government contractor defense.
September 16, 2025
EPA Says Parts Of PFAS Drinking Water Rule ‘Invalid,’ Wants Them Vacated

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has moved in the District of Columbia Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals to partially vacate its rule for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in drinking water, saying that it now agrees with two drinking water providers that sued over the rule. The EPA contends that parts of the rulemaking process were unlawful, and portions of the “PFAS National Primary Drinking Water Regulation” are “invalid” as to four types of PFAS.
September 16, 2025
Benton Harbor Residents Say Water Plant Operator’s Conduct Was ‘Shocking’

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Residents who have sued Benton Harbor, Mich., and its officials over lead contamination in drinking water have filed a brief in Michigan federal court arguing that Benton Harbor Water Plant operator Michael O’Malley’s conduct was “deliberately indifferent and shocking,” therefore his motion for summary judgment dismissal of the lone remaining claim against him should be denied.
September 16, 2025
Gasoline Companies Ask Court To Apply Prior Ruling That Excludes Some MTBE Claims

NEW YORK — The gasoline companies that are defendants in a lawsuit brought by Pennsylvania alleging contamination of water from methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) have filed a brief in New York federal court arguing that it should apply a prior ruling in the litigation which held that the state’s claim for failure to warn could not proceed.
September 16, 2025
Countertop Manufacturer Seeks Coverage For Underlying Silica Bodily Injury Suits

LOS ANGELES — An insured manufacturer and distributor of countertops and countertop products filed suit in California state court, claiming that its insurers breached their contracts of insurance and acted in bad faith in relying on their policies’ pollution and silica exclusions to deny coverage for underlying silica-exposure bodily injury suits in which the insured is named as a defendant.
September 15, 2025
3M Removes AstroTurf PFAS Case Brought By Former Pro Baseball Players’ Widows

PHILADELPHIA — The 3M Co. on Sept. 12 removed to Pennsylvania federal court a lawsuit brought against it and other makers or suppliers of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) by former players and some widows of former players for the Philadelphia Phillies baseball team who allege that the companies are liable for wrongful death and other harm due to the presence of PFAS in the artificial turf that was used for the surface of the baseball field in Veterans Stadium, the team’s former home stadium. 3M argues that the federal officer removal statute applies because the alleged PFAS contamination is linked to its manufacture of the firefighting agent aqueous film forming foam (AFFF) for the U.S. military and says the players’ alleged injuries stem from the fact that they drank local water, which is tainted with AFFF.
September 12, 2025
Judge Partially Nixes Suit For Phthalate Contamination Of General Mills Products

CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. — A federal judge in New York has partially dismissed a lawsuit brought by consumers who contend that General Mills Inc. and Annie’s Homegrown deceptively marketed and labeled their Annie’s brand of macaroni and cheese products because they contain phthalates, ruling that the plaintiffs’ misrepresentation, breach of warranty and negligence per se claims fail but that claims for material omissions and unjust enrichment survive.
September 11, 2025
Petitioners Say 5th Circuit ‘Plainly Erred’ In Heavy Metal Baby Food Ruling

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A baby food manufacturer and Whole Foods Market filed a reply merits brief in the U.S. Supreme Court on Sept. 10 arguing that the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals “plainly erred” in holding that it was required to vacate a district court’s final judgment in a suit between diverse parties after concluding that the district court erred in dismissing Whole Foods in a dispute over allegations that the baby food maker contaminated its product with heavy metals.
September 11, 2025
Groups Urge 4th Circuit To Rehear En Banc Ethylene Oxide Case Over Disputed Expert

RICHMOND, Va. — Two groups have filed amicus curiae briefs in the Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in support of a petition for rehearing en banc sought by Union Carbide following a split opinion reversing a lower court’s ruling that had granted summary judgment on standing to Union Carbide in a lawsuit over exposure to ethylene oxide (EtO). In one amicus brief, Lawyers for Civil Justice (LCJ) contend that the Fourth Circuit majority applied an incorrect legal standard related to the admissibility of an expert under Federal Rule of Evidence 702.
September 11, 2025
Government: Causation Lacking In Camp Lejeune Case, Experts Fail Evidence Standard

RALEIGH, N.C. — The U.S. government has filed a brief in support of a motion for partial summary judgment in the Camp Lejeune water crisis multidistrict litigation in North Carolina federal court arguing that the plaintiffs lack evidence supporting general causation as between exposure to dichloroethylene (DCE) and what are called Track 1 diseases. In addition to the government’s motion regarding DCE, it filed a raft of pleadings seeking to exclude multiple plaintiffs’ experts pursuant to Federal Rule of Evidence 702 in various individual actions that are part of the MDL.
September 10, 2025
Judge Approves Nearly $600,000 In Damages For Jet Fuel Spill At Hawaii Naval Base

HONOLULU — A federal judge in Hawaii on Sept. 9 entered judgment for 17 bellwether plaintiffs in a lawsuit over groundwater contamination from a jet fuel spill at the Pearl Harbor Naval Base, awarding a total of $598,633.15 in damages and ruling that there is “no just reason for delay” for the entry of a final judgment.
September 10, 2025
Putative Class Plaintiffs Say PFAS Case Against Band-Aid Makers Is Well-Founded

TRENTON, N.J. — Plaintiffs who filed a putative class action against Johnson & Johnson and affiliates alleging that they have been injured by the presence of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in Band-Aids have filed a brief in New Jersey federal court arguing that the defendants’ motion to dismiss “fails on every front, applying incorrect legal standards and ignoring well-pleaded factual allegations.”
September 10, 2025
MAHA Strategy Calls For Sweeping Federal Initiatives And Agency Reorganization

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) Commission on Sept. 9 released a report outlining its strategy to enact multiple sweeping initiatives to be launched by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and others, while also calling for the “comprehensive reorganization” of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to create the Administration for a Healthy America, which the MAHA Commission calls “a new agency structure specifically designed to coordinate and lead the Federal government’s response to the chronic disease crisis through integrated prevention-focused programs and streamlined accountability for related programs.”
September 09, 2025
Government Seeks To Hold In Abeyance Any CERCLA Claims Asserted In AFFF Litigation

CHARLESTON, S.C. — The U.S. government on Sept. 8 moved in South Carolina federal court to hold in abeyance claims against the government that seek cost recovery and contribution under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) in multidistrict litigation pertaining to water contamination from the use of the firefighting agent aqueous film forming foam (AFFF). The motion was filed in the docket of a case brought by the Lakewood Water District, but the document indicates that the government intends the abeyance to apply to all MDL cases in which the government is a defendant.
September 09, 2025
Nuisance Suit Against Exxon For Plastics Pollution May Proceed, Judge Says

SAN FRANCISCO — A California federal judge granted Exxon Mobil Corp.’s motion to dismiss claims by environmental groups that it violated California’s unfair competition law (UCL) by manufacturing single-use plastics that it allegedly misrepresented as recyclable while earning billions of dollars from sales but denied the motion as to the plaintiffs’ public nuisance claims.
September 09, 2025
Firefighters Say They Have Established Injury Claims Against Makers Of PFAS

NEW HAVEN, Conn. — Firefighters and other plaintiffs filed a brief in Connecticut federal court arguing that they have established injury-in-fact, traceability and fraudulent concealment against the 3M Co. and others, so their lawsuit alleging that they have been poisoned by per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in protective coating in firefighting gear should not be dismissed. The plaintiffs also filed a brief in support of a motion for jurisdictional discovery.
September 09, 2025
New York Attorney General, Landlords Reach $515,000 Settlement In Lead Case

BUFFALO, N.Y. — New York Attorney General Letitia James has reached a $515,000 settlement with landlords in Buffalo, N.Y., that funds lead hazard remediation and creates a relief fund for tenants poisoned by lead paint. The consent order and judgment was entered in New York state court.