Environment Legal News Articles & Interviews

Washington, DC Data released by the Environmental Protection Agency shows that 44 million people in the U.S. have toxic “forever chemicals” known as PFAS in their drinking water, but that could be just the tip of the iceberg as the full scale of PFAS contamination is likely much more widespread. However, scientists at the Environmental Working Group (EWG) estimated in 2020 that more than 200 million Americans are exposed to forever chemicals in their drinking water.

Jacksonville, N.C November has been a big month for Camp Lejeune attorneys. Litigation is on track – literally. Discovery is divided into two tracks of five illnesses each and the first lawsuits are slated for 2024. The first government settlements have finally been accepted and Reuters reported an unpublished study finding elevated Camp Lejeune cancer rates at the U.S. military base, which could result in even more Camp Lejeune lawsuits.

Charleston, SCOn September 13, Marye Smith filed a perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina. Smith v. 3M Company alleges that Ms. Smith developed ulcerative colitis because of years of exposure to toxic PFAS in drinking water contaminated with aqueous firefighting foam.  

Los Angeles, CA On July 11, a California jury awarded the family of a man who died of asbestos mesothelioma more than $107 million. Joel Hernandezcueva, the father of four young children, died in 2014 from pleural mesothelioma, a terminal cancer that his treating physicians testified is caused only by asbestos exposure.  

Santa Clara, CA To help hundreds and thousands of Camp LeJeune plaintiffs claiming contaminated water caused serious health issues, lawyers have filed a Master Complaint outlining and defining all their common allegations and claims. And to streamline litigation for bringing new Camp LeJeune lawsuits, plaintiffs can take some of these allegations and claims and adopt them in a Short Form complaint. Each plaintiff, however, is still required to individually establish that their injury is “at least as likely as not” caused by exposure to water on the base.

Ann Arbor, MI A study, published on September 18 in the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology suggests that exposure to perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS and PFOA) compounds greatly increases the risk of melanoma, ovarian and uterine cancers in women. The precise mechanism is unknown, but PFAS exposure appears to affect the immune and hormonal systems, liver function and other bodily processes.

Charleston, SC On August 29, the District Court for the District of South Carolina preliminarily approved a revision to the $12.5 billion proposed settlement in a class action perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl lawsuit brought by a long list of water utilities. The settlement was reached after a five-year legal battle that involved 37.4 million pages of discovery documents and more than 160 depositions. The revision is specifically designed to protect the utilities from some future liabilities.

Santa Clara, CA The Department of the Navy has come up with its “Elective Option”, which it describes as an expedited resolution process. It is an attempt to speed up compensation for more than 1,100 federal lawsuits and 93,000 administrative claims filed by Camp Lejeune veterans and their families. To date, not one Camp Lejeune claim has been resolved and time is running out for veterans injured by contaminated water. 

Greenbelt, MD On August 4, Maryland’s largest water utility, the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission (WSSC), filed a perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS/PFOA) lawsuit against 3M and DuPont de Nemours among other defendants. Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission v. 3M Company alleges that the PFAS manufacturers made and marketed PFAS-contaminated fire-suppression foams and concealed the toxic nature of the materials from the public.

Santa Clara, CA Covering up contaminated water at Camp LeJeune has been called a “crime against humanity” but with the passing of the PACT Act, the Marine Corps had a chance to make things right, to compensate its veterans and civilians who were exposed to the toxic water. But to make matters worse than they already are, countless victims are still waiting for relief. One year after the act  was passed, not one of more than 75,000 claims filed under the Camp Lejeune Justice Act has been settled.