Read the full article by Clark Mindock (REUTERS)
“A U.S. judge on Tuesday awarded over $956 million in legal fees to plaintiffs’ lawyers who secured two settlements worth more than $11 billion with major manufacturers of toxic ‘forever chemicals’ on behalf of public water systems.
U.S. District Judge Richard Gergel in Charleston, South Carolina, granted unopposed fee requests after 3M (MMM.N), opens new tab, DuPont de Nemours Inc (DD.N), opens new tab, Chemours (CC.N), opens new tab and Corteva (CTVA.N), opens new tab last year agreed to resolve claims that their products polluted drinking water in the United States with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS.
PFAS are a class of thousands of chemicals used in firefighting foams, nonstick pans and stain resistant fabrics. They have been linked to cancer and other diseases and are often called forever chemicals because they do not easily break down in nature or the human body.
Last year, 3M agreed to a PFAS-related settlement with public water systems worth $10.3 billion, while the other companies agreed to a settlement worth $1.19 billion. The companies did not admit to wrongdoing as part of the deals.” …