Rejecting 3M, DuPont PFAS settlements risks decade-long legal fights, judge warns

3M Co

05/12/2023 23:45

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      Judge says individual litigation could take a decade
    

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      Water providers must opt out of settlements this week or
next
    

  
    By Clark Mindock
       Dec 5 (Reuters) - The U.S. judge overseeing thousands of
lawsuits over toxic "forever chemicals" on Tuesday warned that
any water utility that opts out of proposed settlements with 3M
 MMM.N , DuPont de Nemours  DD.N  and others may have to wait a
decade to resolve their individual cases.
    U.S. District Judge Richard Gergel in Charleston, South
Carolina, issued the warning as water utilities are reviewing
two proposed settlements worth a combined nearly $11.5 billion
that would help pay to clean up drinking water polluted with
per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. Those settlements
could be derailed if too many water utilities opt out.
    PFAS are a class of chemicals that have been used in a wide
variety of products from firefighting foams to nonstick pans,
and have been tied to cancer and other diseases. 
    Gergel said he had been advised that some water utilities
have been told their cases would be "promptly" removed to
different courts for resolution should they opt out, but that
any party relying on that information is "misinformed." Gergel
is overseeing thousands of lawsuits that have been consolidated
in his court related to PFAS pollution from firefighting foams,
including the water utility cases.
    Final approval of a $1.19 billion settlement agreed to by
DuPont, Chemours  CC.N  and Corteva  CTVA.N  is set to be
considered at a Dec. 14 hearing, while final approval of 3M's
$10.3 billion settlement is scheduled to be considered in
February. The water utilities faced a deadline to opt out of the
DuPont settlement Monday, and have until Dec. 11 to opt out of
the 3M settlement.
    The deals will not go through if a certain number of
utilities opt out, but that threshold is not public. A handful
of cities and water districts have filed to opt out of the
settlements, while more than 22 local governments and agencies
in New York, Texas, Colorado, California and elsewhere had
called the deals inadequate. 
    Gergel said any utility that opts out of the settlements
should not expect their cases will be resolved quickly. He said
individual cases will not be remanded to their original courts
and would instead remain part of the multidistrict litigation
for the "foreseeable future.” 
    It is "realistic" to think individual cases could "take up
to a decade" to resolve on their own, he said.
    Attorneys representing water utilities that have opted out
did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
    Paul Napoli, a lead attorney who helped negotiate the
settlements on behalf of the plaintiffs, said the judge's order
"should serve as a sobering reminder of the immense challenges
and delays inherent in pursuing individual litigation paths."
    A 3M spokesperson said CEO Mike Roman told financial
analysts Monday morning when asked about water utilities opting
out of the deal that the company is committed to working to
resolve their concerns. 
    The case is In Re Aqueous Film-Forming Foams Products
Liability Litigation, U.S. District Court for the District of
South Carolina, case No. 2:18-mn-02873.
    For the plaintiffs: Paul Napoli of Napoli Shkolnik; Michael
London of Douglas & London; and Scott Summy of Baron & Budd
    For 3M: Richard Bulger, Daniel Ring and Michael Olsen of
Mayer Brown
    For DuPont: Molly Craig of the Hood Law Firm
    
    Read more: 
    3M, DuPont PFAS settlements called inadequate by cities,
other objectors
    3M's $10.3 billion PFAS settlement gets preliminary approval

 (Reporting by Clark Mindock)