Toxics Law Reporter Index-Summary

FDA

See FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION (FDA)

FEDERAL EMPLOYERS' LIABILITY ACT (FELA)

– Asbestos, mesothelioma, railroad worker's voluntary general release does not preclude tort suit (W. Va.), 410

FEDERAL PREEMPTION

FERTILIZER

– CWA nutrient regulation in streams needs new approach, Analysis & Perspective, 910
– DePue plant contamination, Ill. superfund law bars village penalty ordinance suit (C.D. Ill.), 794
– Manufacturing plant owner pleads guilty to releasing contaminated waste water in city sewers (D. Kan.), 321

FIRES

– Flame retardants

– – Pentabromodiphenyl ether (pentaBDE), OECD advises member states to review safety, 205
– – Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), Wash. bans manufacture, sale, and distribution, 139

– Hazardous waste burning and illnesses, Iraq and Afghanistan veterans sue Halliburton and KBR (N.D. Okla.), 893; Senate committee probes hexavalent chromium and sodium dichromate exposure, 940

FLORIDA

– CWA, NPDES permit not needed for water transfer to Lake Okeechobee, judgment reversed (11th Cir.), 705
– Drywall, homeowners and builders allege Chinese-manufactured product releases toxins (M.D. Fla.), 201; sulfur and other chemicals found, Nelson (D-Fla) and investigators sickened after visiting homes, 665; MDL panel consolidates suits, 725; CPSC issues status report, 840
– Glycerin, diethylene glycol-tainted fever medicine, Haitians may not sue Dutch distributor in Fla. (Fla. Dist. Ct.), 871
– Lead, mercury, and arsenic ash contamination, school board property falls under pollution exclusion clause (M.D. Fla.), 969
– Mold, pollution exclusion clauses, efficient proximate cause analysis not proper under state law (11th Cir.), 609
– PCBs, economic harm to property, homeowners' joinder of plant manager is fact issue warranting remand to state court (N.D. Fla.), 304
– Philip Morris ordered to pay $8M punitive and compensatory damages in first Engle progeny trial (Fla. Cir. Ct.), 267
– Septic tank and drainage, caveat emptor does not bar buyer suit against nondisclosing commercial real estate seller (Fla. Dist. Ct.), 870
– Smoker aware of risks, jury finds for R.J. Reynolds (Fla. Cir. Ct.), 447
– Superfund, Landia Chemical site, $8.5M settlement approved (M.D. Fla.), 1069
– Viral contaminants and harmful microbes in swimming pool, pollution exclusion clause bars coverage under state law (S.D. Fla.), 1015

FOOD

– BPA

See BISPHENOL-A (BPA)

– E. coli

– – Beef recall, mother of teenager with hemolytic uremic syndrome sues JBS Swift (D. Colo.), 840
– – Cookie dough, consumers sue Nestle (Cal. Super. Ct., D. Colo.), 790
– – Spinach and hemolytic uremic syndrome, consumer sues producers, retailer, and related firms (Wis. Cir. Ct.), 1063

– Milk and dairy products, melamine contamination, Chinese courts agree to hear cases, 339
– Peanut butter contaminated with salmonella, Peanut Corp. of Am.

– – Company files Chapter 7 bankruptcy, 269
– – Insurer seeks declaratory judgment on policy violations and duty to indemnify (W.D. Va.), 233
– – Parents of ill child sue (M.D. Ga.), 138; punitive damages sought, 178
– – Son may seek punitive damages for death of mother (D. Minn.), 202

– Popcorn lung and diacetyl, jury awards $7.5M compensatory damages to American Pop Corn worker and wife (N.D. Iowa), 367
– Salmon, private party chemical coloring claims not preempted, DOJ amicus brief argues against review (U.S., rev sought), 9
– Slush puppie beverages sold by filling station, petroleum-based contamination, insurer claims no duty to defend (M.D. Fla.), 990
– Tuna

– – Mercury warnings, federal agency actions preempt suit, seafood producer argues (U.S., rev sought), 92; opposing brief filed, 447; (rev den), 531
– – Methyl-mercury, canning companies need not warn consumers of naturally occurring contaminant (Cal. Ct. App.), 370

– Vegetable oils, spill prevention plans, EPA seeks comment re delay of rule easing requirements, 455

FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION (FDA)

– BPA safety letter, Waxman (D-Cal) and Stupak (D-Mich) seek review, 701; further developments

See LEGISLATION, FEDERAL, HR 2749

– Labeling regulations

See PACKAGING AND LABELING

– Preemption, product liability litigation, Outlook 2009, 120
– Sentinel Initiative, Senators request continuous updates on drug safety surveillance system, 59

FORMALDEHYDE

– Child bathing products are carcinogenic, suit alleges (D.N.J.), 662
– FEMA trailers, class certification denied, multidistrict suit on disparate issues will proceed as mass joinder (E.D. La.), 4; trial set, 502; state tort claims preempted, 657; trailer not unreasonably dangerous product, jury finds, 1192
– Inhalation, product liability claim must meet state Wrongful Death Act time limitation (Ind.), 6
– Stationary engines, EPA proposes rule to reduce toxic emissions, 322
– Workplace exposure may increase cancer risk, Natl. Cancer Inst. study finds, 666

FRANCE

– Oil spill, Intl. Convention on Civil Liab. does not divest federal court of jurisdiction (2d Cir.), 721

FRAUD

– Class actions

– – Fen-phen plaintiffs' attorneys disbarred after conviction, forfeit $30M of settlement (E.D. Ky.), 476
– – History and future predictions, Analysis & Perspective, 458
– – Ketek, concealing danger, nonparties may not be deposed during certification proceedings (E.D.N.Y.), 581
– – Yaz contraceptives, Cal. false advertising and consumer fraud claims dismissed (E.D. Cal.), 838

– Hazardous waste, “as is” provision not bar to buyer suit against seller of contaminated property (Cal. Ct. App.), 811
– Septic tank and drainage, caveat emptor does not bar buyer suit against nondisclosing commercial real estate seller (Fla. Dist. Ct.), 870
– Superfund, contractors plead guilty in kickback conspiracy at N.J. sites (D.N.J.), 346; Federal Creosote site landscaper pleads guilty, 792; former soil treatment exec pleads guilty, 818; electrical subcontractor employee sentenced, 846; project manager and subcontractors indicted, 1110
– Vinyl chloride and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, workplace exposure, suit against chemical manufacturers and Am. Chemistry Council properly dismissed (1st Cir.), 932

FUMES

– Ammonia release, explosion, chemical manufacturer to pay civil penalty and improve safety (W.D. Ky.), 1021
– Benzene

– – Acute lymphoblastic leukemia and property damage, landfill leaching, verdict against city overturned (Tex.), 578
– – Workplace exposure to aircraft fuel, pollution exclusion clause does not bar insurer coverage (Ohio Ct. App.), 729

– Beryllium, NASA worker hypersensitivity to potentially toxic substance not compensable injury (5th Cir.), 88
– Carbon monoxide poisoning, risk in van parked outdoors with improperly installed exhaust system not obvious, summary judgment reversed (11th Cir.), 264
– Diesel exhaust and multiple myeloma, studies on which physician bases opinion need not draw definitive causation conclusions (Neb.), 334
– Formaldehyde

– – FEMA trailers, class certification denied, multidistrict suit on disparate issues will proceed as mass joinder (E.D. La.), 4; trial set, 502; state tort claims preempted, 657; trailer not unreasonably dangerous product, jury finds, 1192
– – Inhalation, product liability claim must meet state Wrongful Death Act time limitation (Ind.), 6

– Hazardous waste burning and illnesses, Iraq and Afghanistan veterans sue Halliburton and KBR (N.D. Okla.), 893; Senate committee probes hexavalent chromium and sodium dichromate exposure, 940
– Hydrogen sulfide

– – Oil well releases endanger health and property values, class certified (S.D. Ill.), 305
– – Reactive Airways Dysfunction Syndrome (RADS), physician's differential diagnosis meets Daubert standards, gas plant denied summary judgment (D.N.D.), 89

– Manganese, workers file suit against welding rod manufactures for overexposure and nervous system disorders (E.D. Tex.), 38
– Noxious odors and chemical emissions

– – Class settlement preliminarily approved (W.D. Ky.), 811
– – Hazardous substances from paper plant, class claims dismissed (M.D. Ala.), 1041

– Pesticides, hotel room exposure causing illness, experts not needed to determine obvious negligence (6th Cir.), 335
– Propyl bromide and neurological disorders, intentional workplace exposure, $7.48M verdict upheld (Miss.), 1098
– Sulfuric acid, class certification properly denied for evacuees of limited area train tanker leak (6th Cir.), 173
– Vapor intrusion, ASTM VI Standard real estate proximity presumptions inappropriate, Analysis & Perspective, 768
– Vinyl chloride

– – Angiosarcoma, workplace exposure, failure to warn, sophisticated user and bulk supplier defenses allowed (S.D.W. Va.), 1101
– – Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, workplace exposure, suit against chemical manufacturers and Am. Chemistry Council properly dismissed (1st Cir.), 932