3M, DuPont defeat massive class action over forever chemicals

3M Co

27/11/2023 23:29

By Clark Mindock
       Nov 27 (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on Monday handed
3M  MMM.N , Corteva Inc  CTVA.N  subsidiary E.I. du Pont de
Nemours and Co and other manufactures of toxic so-called
"forever chemicals" a big win in their fight against legal
liability for the substances, rejecting a lower court's ruling
that would have allowed about 11.8 million Ohio residents to sue
the companies as a group.
    The Cincinnati, Ohio-based 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
vacated a lower court's approval of the massive class action,
which included virtually every resident of Ohio and put
considerable legal pressure on the chemical manufacturers to
settle the plaintiffs' claims.
    The court found that lead plaintiff Kevin Hardwick filed too
broad a complaint against the manufacturers, and had not shown 
per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, found in his body
could be traced directly to defendants such as units of 3M,
DuPont and others.
    The appeals court instructed the lower court to dismiss
Hardwick's lawsuit, which had aimed to force the companies to
pay for studies analyzing the health impacts of PFAS. The
chemicals are used in a wide range of consumer products
including non-stick pans and clothing and have been tied to
cancer and other diseases.
    The lawsuit also sought to establish a fund to monitor Ohio
residents for health impacts from PFAS exposure. 
    Representatives for the defendants and for the plaintiffs
did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
    The chemicals are often referred to as forever chemicals
because they do not easily break down in nature or in the human
body.

 (Reporting by Clark Mindock, Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and
Lincoln Feast.)
 ((Clark.Mindock@thomsonreuters.com;))