Our attorneys handle AFFF fire foam lawsuits across the country.
On this page you will find the latest news and updates on the subject.Class Action Lawsuit Against AFFF Fire Fighting Foamand our prediction of the settlement amounts plaintiffs in AFFF cancer claims can expect.
AFFF Class Action Lawsuit Last Updated: March 2023
March 19, 2023: In a lawsuit filed Thursday in Massachusetts state court, the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF)accusedthe National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) to enforce a testing standard that requires the use of PFAS in firefighters' protective equipment despite the health hazards of the chemicals. The IAFF is the representative organization for more than 334,000 professional first responders, including firefighters, paramedics, and dispatchers, in both the United States and Canada. Its members are responsible for protecting the life and property of more than 85 percent of the continent's population. They serve approximately 6,000 communities in every state in the United States and in ten provinces and two territories of Canada.
The lawsuit seeks to hold NFPA accountable for failing to remove the hazardous test from its standard on protective associations for indoor and nearby firefighting.
According to the lawsuit filed in Massachusetts Superior Court in Norfolk, NFPA required firefighters to use perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl toxicants in the moisture barrier midlayer of protective gear. The union claimed that NFPA could have chosen other standards that would have allowed the use of other materials but would still have protected firefighters. The IAFF said that the chemicals in the bunker equipment break down and break down when exposed to heat, exposing firefighters to PFAS through ingestion, skin contact and inhalation, and that the toxins are have been linked to serious health effects, including cancer.
March 16, 2023:354 new cases were added to the MDL fire foam class action lawsuit in the last month. The CDM has thus passed the 4,000 mark with a total of 4,058 pending cases. It is also the second month in a row that the CDM has recorded a higher than average volume of new registrations. The increase in volume could be an indication that attorneys are waiting for a settlement and are trying to file cases before it happens.
March 7, 2023: A new lawsuit was filed this month against the AFFF fire department. the plaintiff aKent v. 3Mis a 62-year-old man from Deer Park, Texas. While serving as a firefighter in the United States Marine Corps, he was exposed to fluorochemicals. This exposure led to his diagnosis of prostate cancer and subsequent prostatectomy. His firefighting foam lawsuit alleges that he suffered injuries, pain, suffering, and emotional distress as a result of his exposure to fluorochemicals.
Plaintiffs' attorneys filed this lawsuit pursuant to Case Management Order No. 3, issued by Judge Richard M. Gergel. Judge Gergel is the AFFF class action judge in South Carolina who hears all federal AFFF lawsuits. Pursuant to that order, the plaintiff designated the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas as the "local court" for the case. The AFFF lawsuit calls for the case to be transferred to the Southern District of Texas because the acts or omissions giving rise to the lawsuit occurred in Texas.
AFFF Class Action Lawsuit Last Updated: February 2023
February 17, 2023: Since January 15, 317 new AFFF firefighter lawsuits have been added to the MDL, bringing the total number of pending cases to 3,704. The monthly average of new cases for this CDM in 2022 was 175, so that month it was almost double. We do not know how many of these new cases are municipal water contamination cases versus personal injury claims.
February 13, 2022:The AFFF-MDL judge will make critical decisions on Daubert's motions challenging the admissibility of scientific evidenceCity of Stuart v. 3M Co., and others. (Bellwetter's first trial sentence for June). The City of Stuart has a water supply contamination case, not a personal injury case, with claims that AFFF exposure caused cancer.
However, Daubert's causal evidence rulings in the City of Stuart will still have some applicability to what scientific evidence is admissible in AFFF cancer cases. Personal injury cases will participate in a separate Leitwetter testing program after the water supply testing.
February 8, 2023:This post summarizes themAFFF process in 2023.
February 3, 2023:Many victims do not contact us because they believe the statute of limitations for filing a lawsuit prevented their claim. They are correct in assuming that the statute of limitations to file an AFFF (Aqueous Film Forming Foam) lawsuit in most states is typically 2-3 years from the date of the violation.
But most states have a discovery rule that is critical to extending the time limit for filing an AFFF lawsuit. What is detection rule? It is an exception to the prescription, delaying its course until the actor knows, or should have known with reasonable care, both the offense and its cause. In other words, the time to bring a personal injury action does not begin until the plaintiff becomes aware of the injury and its connection to the defendant's negligence.
The statute of limitations and the discovery rule are complicated, with numerous exceptions. But many victims looking to file an AFFF lawsuit call us believing that if they do, they probably won't have a claim in 2023.
AFFF Class Action Lawsuit Last Updated: January 2023
January 24, 2023:Earlier this month, we told you about a motion to dismiss (summary verdict) filed by some defendants in the upcoming AFFF trial. Some defendants claimed that no expert testimony linked their chemicals to water in this case. Of course, the plaintiffs have responded with expert reports that do just that.
January 18, 2023:For the past few months, the AFFF Fire Foam MDL Class Action Lawsuit has seen an average of more than 100 new cases each month. However, only 49 new cases were transferred to the CDM in the previous month, bringing the total number of cases to 3,387. Is the growth of litigation slowing down? That is a theory. However, there are few lawsuits during the holidays, so it's likely just a seasonal slowdown. We'll take a closer look at our trend next month.
12 January 2023:Anew studyin the journal Occupational Medicine reports that firefighters are 60% more likely to die of cancer than the general population. The mortality rate for prostate cancer was four times higher, for leukemia three times higher, and for kidney cancer two times higher than in the general population. The researchers made it clear that cancer-causing chemicals in AFFF could be a major contributing factor.
7 January 2023: A group of 3 defendants (Tyco, BASF, and Chemguard Inc.) recently filed a motion for summary judgment to get out of AFFF's first major case (City of Stuart v. 3M Co., et al.), before it end in May 2023 In court.
All three petitions argue that there is insufficient evidence that its AFFF products were the source of water contamination in the Stuart municipal water supply. In support of this argument, each of the motions notes that none of the plaintiff's experts specifically named the defendant's products.
In these cases there are many defendants; Some are released on summary conviction before trial.
AFFF Class Action Lawsuit Last Updated: December 2022
An additional 100 new cases were added to the AFFF Fire Foam Class Action MDL between November 15, 2022 and December 15, 2022. This brings the total number of AFFF cases pending in the class action action to 3,399. In 2022, the AFFF class action lawsuit added about 1,300 new cases, a growth rate of nearly 50%. Bellwetter's first attempt is still planned for June 20233, but will involve contamination of the municipal water supply. These cases are somewhat different from personal injury cases, although they still have some evidence of causation.
AFFF Class Action Lawsuit Last Updated: November 2022
AFFF settlement discussions
With the first show trial scheduled for 2023, a court-appointed settlement mediator has now been commissioned to “facilitate and promote” global settlement talks between the two parties. The arbitrator, retired Judge Layn Phillips, faces a complex task as the AFFF litigation includes cancer claims by individual firefighters and lawsuits by local communities over contamination of water supplies.
An AFFF settlement becomes a Herculean task because of the different types of claims: some are individual, others are entire communities. Other defendants will also have different views about what a reasonable AFFF settlement should be. But there's the possibility of some AFFF comparisons of this effort, which would be in everyone's best interest.
How many plaintiffs in the AFFF class action lawsuit?
As of November 15, 2022, 3,299 cases are pending in the AFFF's MDL (Fire Foam) Class Action Lawsuit. In the last 30 days, 111 AFFF lawsuits were added.
Some of these cases involve municipal water contamination and others are individual personal injury cases brought by former firefighters who claim they developed cancer from exposure. We do not know the exact number of cases in each category as this has not been tracked.
Last Update on the AFFF Class Action Lawsuit: October 2022
One case was selected for the first Bellwether test trial in AFFF MDL.
Earlier this week, the MDL judge ruled that the first trial in the City of Stuart v. 3M Company et al. (2:18-cv-3487) will take place. This is not a personal injury case, but a municipal water contamination case. The City of Stuart is a medium-sized city on the Atlantic coast of Florida (near Palm Beach).
The city alleges that firefighters using AFFF during training exercises contaminated its water supply. The city is suing 3M and other manufacturers for failure to warn and other theories.
The trial is scheduled to begin on June 5, 2023, with preliminary dispositive motions due by February 3, 2023.
AFFF Class Action Lawsuit Last Updated: September 2022
In the most significant development of the AFFF class action lawsuit, government contractor 3M's defense in the fire-fighting foam lawsuits was thrown out by the MDL judge last week. 3M had sought summary judgment because it manufactured its AFFF products under a government contract and therefore should be exempt from liability. The court disagreed, concluding that the government contractor's defense did not apply because 3M withheld information from the government about AFFF's potential health risks. 3M's defense as a government contractor in the earplug lawsuits was also thrown out.
Collective action against Firefighting Foam (AFFF).
Aqueous Film Forming Foam ("AFFF") is used to extinguish fires and is commonly known as fire extinguishing foam. It was recently discovered that prolonged use or exposure to certain chemicals in AFFF fire fighting foam can cause cancer. Anyone regularly exposed to firefighting foam and subsequently diagnosed with kidney, pancreatic, prostate, or testicular cancer can file an AFFF firefighting lawsuit and receive financial compensation.
All of AFFF's fire-fighting foam lawsuits in federal court have been consolidated into one "class action lawsuit."MDLin the District of South Carolina. As of August 2022, the AFFF MDL has over 2,500 pending plaintiffs for fire fighting foam cancer claims. After groundbreaking testing, the AFFF's MDL class action lawsuit is expected to result in a global settlement.
AFFF Fire Fighting Foam Causes Cancer
AFFF ("Aqueous Film Forming Foam") is a sprayable foam specifically designed to extinguish high intensity fires caused by accelerants such as gasoline. The active chemicals in AFFF fire fighting foam belong to a family of chemicals known as PFAS (Polifluoralquilsubstancia).
PFAS are a unique group of chemicals that are extremely resistant to heat and do not break down in oil or water. Unfortunately, the indestructibility of PFASs means that they do not biodegrade or break down in the environment. PFAS tend to move through the soil and end up contaminating groundwater and rivers. For this reason, PFASs are often referred to as "Forever Chemicals."
In the last decade, new scientific research has found that chronic exposure to PFAS in fire fighting foam can cause certain types of cancer. HeEnvironmental protection agencypublished a health advisory in 2016, stating that animal studies showed that prolonged exposure to PFAS caused kidney and testicular cancer.
HeInternational Agency for Research on Cancer(IARC) conducted several studies that found that human exposure to PFAS results in significantly increased rates of kidney, prostate, and testicular cancer.
HeCenters for Disease Control and Prevention(CDC) and theAmerican Cancer Societyhave come to the same conclusion, listing the chemicals in AFFF firefighting foam as human carcinogens.
Exposure to AFFF and PFAS firefighting foam
Anyone with regular and prolonged exposure to AFFF fire fighting foam is at potential risk of developing cancer from PFAS. Chronic exposure to PFAS in AFFF firefighting foam can occur in two ways: (1) occupational exposure to AFFF and (2) PFAS contamination in drinking water.
Occupational exposure to AFFF
People who have worked in certain jobs or occupations in which AFFF firefighting foam has been used on a regular basis (either by themselves or by those close to them) are subject to "occupational exposure" to firefighting foam PFAS. Firefighters who have used AFFF on a regular basis or who have done training exercises with AFFF firefighting foam are the most obvious example of people with occupational exposure.
Other examples of persons occupationally exposed to AFFF firefighting foam include persons who work in locations where AFFF has been used, disposed of, or manufactured. For example, commercial airports, military bases, and industrial facilities used to use firefighting foam during training exercises. Anyone who has worked at these facilities may have been exposed to PFAS through indirect contact.
Exposure to PFAS in groundwater
The other category of people with chronic exposure to PFAS from AFFF firefighting foam would be people who consume PFAS-contaminated drinking water. Hundreds and possibly thousands of residential areas across the country had groundwater heavily contaminated with PFAS firefighting foam.
Many residential areas with PFAS-contaminated groundwater are located near military bases or airports where AFFF firefighting foam has been used regularly. The PFAS in the extinguishing foam eventually seeped through the soil and into the water table.
Cancer Caused by AFFF Fire Fighting Foam
Scientific research has found that chronic exposure to AFFF firefighting foam (both occupational exposure and exposure to groundwater contamination) may result in increased rates of certain types of cancer. Cancers that have been linked to AFFF exposure include:
- kidney cancer
- bladder cancer
- pancreatic cancer
- Liver cancer
- breast cancer
- Leukemia (and other blood cancers)
- Prostate cancer
- ovarian cancer
- Cancer testicular
- Non-Hodgkin lymphoma
From this list, the most common cancers we see in victims seeking to file an AFFF lawsuit are testicular, kidney, and prostate cancer. But people exposed to foams containing perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have reported a wide range of cancers beyond the cancers we've listed.
Individuals who can demonstrate that they were exposed to chemicals in AFFF firefighting foam and subsequently developed one of these cancers can file an AFFF lawsuit and receive monetary compensation.
Who Are The Defendants In The AFFF Fire Foam Lawsuits?
The named defendants in the AFFF fire fighting foam lawsuits are companies that manufacture and distribute AFFF products. Firefighting foam has been manufactured and sold by a variety of different companies. DuPont and 3M were two of the largest producers of AFFF fire fighting foam and are key defendants in the current AFFF lawsuits.
Manufacturers such as 3M, DuPont and others have been known since the 1970s that the PFAS in their AFFF products was potentially harmful to the environment. Also, in the 1990s, these companies realized that these chemicals were harmful to humans and that long-term exposure could be linked to cancer.
Settlement Amounts for AFFF Fire Fighting Foam Claims
The AFFF's firefighting foam lawsuits will ultimately be resolved in a global tort settlement. In these types of settlements, defendants deposit a large sum of money into a settlement fund to pay settlement premiums to individual plaintiffs who accept the settlement.
The amount of settlement compensation individual plaintiffs receive is based on a tiered ranking system. Claimants with the strongest AFFF cancer cases are ranked in the top tier and receive the highest settlement payments. Plaintiffs with weaker claims are ranked lower and receive less compensation.
In AFFF lawsuits, the highest level of agreement will likely be for plaintiffs with long-term occupational exposure to AFFF and a diagnosis of one of the more serious cancers that have been associated with AFFF (eg, kidney cancer). or pancreatic cancer). AFFF claimants in the lower settlement levels would include people with lower occupational exposures or a diagnosis of less serious cancers.
Based on settlements in previous cancer mass injury cases, our attorneys predict that AFFF firefighting foam cases in the higher-tier settlements will have average settlements of $300,000 to $600,000. Our estimated value for 2North DakotaTier cases are from $150,000 to $280,000. cases of the 3rdThe stage can end with payments of $75,000 or less.
It is important to remember that these are predictions and not guarantees of future AFFF settlement margins for individual claims. We put a lot of effort into making the best possible settlement predictions. But anyone who thinks they know when and how much AFFF billing will go up is kidding themselves.
Hopefully sooner rather than later we will know what the AFFF comparison offers will be like. There is speculation with a comparison - at least with some of the defendants - in the first half of 2023.
Are you eligible to file an AFFF Fire Foam Claim?
Our mass tort attorneys are currently investigating the AFFF fire foam lawsuits. For our law firm, legitimate claimants meet two essential criteria:
- AFFF Exposure:Eligible claimants must be able to demonstrate that they were regularly exposed to PFAS from AFFF firefighting foam in a professional setting (eg, firefighter, airport worker, etc.) or through contaminated groundwater.
- Cancer Diagnosis:Plaintiffs who can demonstrate prolonged exposure to AFFF must also demonstrate that they were subsequently diagnosed with one of the cancers associated with PFAS: kidney, testicular, prostate, pancreas, liver, bladder, ovarian, etc.
AFFF Fire Foam Class Action Lawyers
Many people exposed to AFFF are filing lawsuits against the companies that make the foam, claiming that the companies knew about the health risks but continued to sell it anyway. The lawsuits argue that the companies should be held liable for the damages caused by AFFF.
Miller & Zois is accepting new AFFF foam firefighting cases in all 50 states. Contact our AFFF class action attorneys today to get your case started. Financial support800-553-8082or get onefree online consultation.