Abbott v. E. I. Du Pont De Nemours And Company

54 F.4th 912 (6th Cir. 2022)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

D used C-8 to manufacture Teflon© products. C-8 (PFOA), is a synthetic organic chemical that is soluble in water and persists in both the human body and the environment. D discharged C-8 into the air, the Ohio River, and landfills without limits until the early 2000s. D learned in the 1960s that C-8 was toxic to animals and was reaching groundwater in the communities surrounding its plant. By the late 1980s, D internally considered the chemical a possible human carcinogen and found that it stayed in the human bloodstream for years. Despite warnings from its C-8 supplier D increased its C-8 discharges between 1984 and 2000. Many brought numerous claims under West Virginia common law, seeking equitable, injunctive, and declaratory relief, and punitive and compensatory damages for alleged injuries arising from C-8 exposure. The court certified a class of nearly 80,000 individuals 'whose drinking water is or has been contaminated with' C-8 attributable to D's C-8 discharges. In 2005, the trial court approved a class-wide settlement agreement, called the Leach Agreement. Under a unique settlement, a Science Panel engaged in the specified epidemiological study. The Panel reported probable findings for six diseases: kidney cancer, testicular cancer, thyroid disease, ulcerative colitis, diagnosed high cholesterol, pregnancy-induced hypertension, and preeclampsia. Fifty afflictions were excluded. P was exposed to C-8 contaminated water at home and in his community. At age 16, Abbott found a mass in his left testicle, and, after surgically removing his testicle, doctors diagnosed him with testicular cancer. He did not experience a relapse until 10 years later when he was beginning to plan a family with his wife, Julie, while still living in the Pomeroy region. P sought medical help for pain in his remaining testicle. A definitive diagnosis of testicular cancer came only after doctors removed his testicle to conduct a pathology analysis. The spread of the cancer to his lymph nodes required further surgery, and P must take testosterone injections due to his loss of both testicles. The jury found for P awarding them $40 million and $10 million in damages, respectively. The district court later applied the Ohio Tort Reform Act to Julie Abbott's award, reducing it to $250,000.