Defective Products Legal News Articles & Interviews

Washington, DC Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS/PFOA) foams have been a staple of military and civilian firefighting operations for sixty years. But their usefulness in fighting liquid fuel fires comes at a steep price for the planet and human health.

Atlanta, GA  The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reports that very low birth weight and premature babies have no access to human donor milk at 13 percent of neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) in the U.S. Breast milk decreases the risk of necrotizing enterocolitis, a serious illness resulting from inflammation and death of intestinal tissue that occurs most often in premature infants.

Santa Clara, CA PFAS water contamination lawsuits will go to the first bellwether trial over toxic chemicals in firefighting foam in March 2023 and the latest aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) complaint was filed last month in the Supreme Court of the State of New York.

Santa Clara, CA 3M has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to grant a review of the U.S. appeals court decision to reinstate close to 6,000 Bair Hugger lawsuits claiming the warming blanket used in surgery results in knee and hip infections. In August 2021, the US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit revived the lawsuits.

Santa Clara, CA On the heels of its massive sleep apnea machine recall, Philips announced yet another recall but this time it involves a plastic component that can release cancer-causing chemicals into the user’s airway. Incredibly, a third and separate recall was announced on September 6, involving masks worn with the sleep machines.

Santa Clara, CA Philips has been slammed with another Dreamstation lawsuit, alleging the company knew its sleep machines could cause cancers and other injuries years before the world-wide recall.

Chicago, ILIn an attempt to keep Similac baby formula lawsuits in federal rather than state court, Abbott tried to use a legal loophole known as “snap removal”, but a federal judge rejected it as “absurd” and kicked the four lawsuits back to state court. The plaintiffs claim that Abbott’s Similac PM 60/40 formula caused a deadly illness in premature infants.

Paraquat is a commercial herbicide widely used in the United States. Farmers have had access to it since 1962, and it is known as "gramoxone" in the country. It is used to control and kill weeds in cotton, potato, sugarcane, soybean, and vegetable varieties. This herbicide contains extremely toxic properties, which can be fatal to humans if consumed directly. Paraquat is also used as a post-harvest drying agent.

Sturgis, MI The FDA began to investigate the Abbott baby formula plant on February 17th, almost two weeks after Stephen’s son died, allegedly from exposure to Cronobacter sakazakii – a bacteria found at Abbott Laboratories Inc.'s facility in Sturgis, Michigan.

Sturgis, MI The Abbott plant, which had produced one-fourth of the nation’s infant formula, was shut down in February after “egregiously unsanitary” conditions were discovered at its Michigan plant – conditions that included bacteria inhabiting key production equipment.