Blogs

San Francisco School District Sues Altria Over Teen Vaping, Settlement Soon Follows

Weeks after San Francisco school district lawyers in federal court accused Altria Group Inc. (MO.N) of hooking a new generation of young people with its vaping products, Altria announced a settlement. On May 10, 2023, Altria agreed to pay $235...
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Consumer Group Calls for Gabapentin to be Classified as a Controlled Substance

The prescription epilepsy drug gabapentin is under fire from the consumer safety group Public Citizen, claiming in a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) petition that some users get high on it, leading to overdoses, addiction, and sometimes death. The consumer...
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Class Action Lawsuits Filed in East Palestine Train Derailment

In the wake of the train crash in East Palestine, Ohio that sent plumes of acrid smoke and toxic chemicals into the environment, residents have joined in filing at least four class-action lawsuits against Norfolk Southern railway for toxic exposure...
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Questions About Anonymity as More University of San Francisco Players Join Sexual Misconduct Lawsuit Against Coaches

More plaintiffs came forward in October in a sexual misconduct lawsuit filed last summer against the former University of San Francisco Dons baseball coaches Nino Giarratano and Troy Nakamura, USF, and the NCAA. The original complaint cites that the coaches...
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Monsanto’s Legacy: A Brief History of Corporate Strongarm Tactics in Favor of Poisonous Products

The pesticide industry, like Big Oil and Big Tobacco before it, has for decades used deception to sell the message that its products are safe and necessary to expand world food production. But global studies prove otherwise. Pesticides, the blanket...
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Juul Labs Avoids Bankruptcy and Settles Thousands of Vaping Lawsuits with New Equity Investment

In the wake of hundreds of layoffs in November and thousands of lawsuits over its vaping products, Juul Labs has secured an equity investment, dodging bankruptcy as it reaches settlements in more than 5,000 cases. About 10,000 plaintiffs, including e-cigarette...
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Limiting Camp Lejeune Attorney Fees in Contaminated Water Cases May Have Unintended Consequences

A Senate bill meant to protect U.S. Marine veterans from being exploited will severely limit their access to competent attorneys in lawsuits against the government, critics say. The Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022 was enacted to permit Marines and...
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Federal Mandates to Swap Out Cancer-Causing PFAS Foam Will Generate Massive Waste and Steep Costs

A federal mandate for firefighting foams to be made without per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) has The Department of Defense, municipal fire departments, airports, oil refineries, and others reliant on the product to fight fires scrambling to manage disposal costs...
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Baby Formula Lawsuits Consolidated for Trial to Determine if Manufacturers Should Have Warned About Risks

The father of a preterm baby who died in neonatal intensive care within a month of birth has joined hundreds of other parents who claim manufacturers knew, but didn’t warn customers, about the deadly risk associated with some baby formulas....
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More Settlement Talks and a Bid for Summary Judgment to Keep 3M Earplug Lawsuits Out of Bankruptcy Court

Mediation continues, and plaintiffs on October 11 asked the court to hold 3M solely and independently liable for injuries caused by defective earplugs manufactured by its subsidiary, Aearo Technologies. 3M is trying to force resolution of the lawsuits into bankruptcy...
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