Benzene is a widely used chemical that pollutes the air and is hazardous to humans. It is a volatile liquid, which means it evaporates quickly when exposed to air. It is colorless, flammable, and has a sweet smell.
Although found in nature, most human exposure to Benzene is the result of industrial activities. Benzene is among the top 20 chemicals produced by volume in the United States.(1)
Benzene is found in gasoline, factory and vehicle emissions, and cigarette smoke. It is also used in a variety of industrial settings.
Women tend absorb benzene at higher levels than men.(10) Once absorbed, the benzene “is rapidly distributed throughout the body and tends to accumulate in fatty tissues”.(11) Benzene has been found in breastmilk.(12)
Benzene causes your body’s cells to not work properly.(13) Scientists suspect that one of the ways benzene causes cancer is by damaging DNA in bone marrow.(14)
Studies show a greater rate of leukemia, especially acute myeloid leukemia (AML), in people exposed to high levels of benzene.(15) Labs studies have demonstrated that rats and mice exposed to benzene develop tumors.(16)
People can be exposed to benzene by drinking contaminated water, breathing contaminated air, or eating contaminated food. Benzene is a very common pollutant and has been found in the air of urban and rural locations.(17)
Outdoor air tends to contain low levels of benzene due to pollution from gasoline, vehicle, and factory emissions and cigarette smoke. People who live near gas stations, heavy traffic areas, factories that use or manufacture benzene, and hazardous waste sites may be exposed to higher and more dangerous levels.(18) (19)
Have you or a loved one been exposed to benzene? You may be eligible for compensation.
Get a Free Case ReviewIndoor air is another source of benzene exposure. In fact, indoor air often has higher levels of benzene than outdoor air. Fumes from the indoor use of glues, detergents, paints and art supplies, solvents, tobacco products, gasoline, and other products containing benzene can accumulate in enclosed spaces, especially spaces with poor ventilation.
Benzene is used in the production of certain chemicals, plastics, and pharmaceuticals.(21) In the past it was used as a solvent in a number of industries, but that use has declined since the EPA listed benzene as a hazardous air pollutant.(22)
Smoke from tobacco products is another way benzene enters the environment. There are also natural sources of benzene in the environment, such as volcanic gas emissions and forest fires.
Benzene in the air breaks down in a few days, but it is much slower to break down in water and soil. Benzene on the ground can enter the air, and benzene in the air can be carried to the ground by rain or snow. Benzene can enter underground water by passing through the soil.(23)
At the federal level, the EPA legally limits the concentration of benzene in drinking water to 5 parts benzene per billion parts of water (5 ppb). States may set even stricter limits.
Weitz & Luxenberg is currently accepting lawsuits on behalf of people in cities, counties, and communities who are suffering from benzene contamination as a result of corporations recklessly dumping or improperly transporting their hazardous waste. Corporations that pollute should be held accountable and made to clean up their mess.
Everyone has a right to clean and safe water, air, and soil. In addition to paying to clean up contamination, polluters should pay for medical monitoring and for treatment of any harmful health consequences of benzene exposure.
If your air, soil, or drinking water is contaminated with harmful levels of benzene, contact your local elected officials, water provider, or both and tell them it’s time to make polluters take responsibility for the damage they’ve caused.
Communities and municipalities are in the best position to take on big corporate polluters. In most cases, it is your water provider (private or municipal) who should be filing a lawsuit.
Call for a free consultation about your benzene contamination legal options.
(917) LAWYERSCities, towns, and counties whose water is contaminated with benzene in excess of the 5ppb (0.005 mg/L) limit set by the EPA should consider filing a lawsuit. Federal law requires public water suppliers to test their water regularly and produce an annual “Consumer Confidence Report.” Look up your most recent CCR at the EPA website.
Communities suffering from contaminated air and soil may also have a case. Air and soil samples can be sent to a lab for analysis.
Heavily industrial areas are at the greatest risk of high benzene levels in the environment. This is especially true of places with lots of oil refineries, such as Iberville Parish, Louisiana, and chemical manufacturing plants, like the Kanawha Valley region of West Virginia.(24)
Superfund sites like the Kin-Buc Landfill in Edison, New Jersey, and Love Canal in Niagara Falls, New York, have also been found to have high levels of benzene.(25)(26) You can search for toxic waste sites with benzene near your home by using the interactive map at toxicsites.us, which uses real-time data from the EPA.
Fracking can release benzene into both the air and water. Communities near shale gas wells are also at risk of benzene pollution.(27)
Weitz & Luxenberg has more than three decades of experience helping innocent people wronged by reckless corporate greed. We have successfully challenged some of the world’s most powerful corporations, including gas companies like ExxonMobil and Shell Oil, to obtain justice for our clients.
We currently represent multiple cities in the fight for clean water. We have filed a lawsuit on behalf of Minnesota cities whose water was polluted by toxic refined coal tar products. We also represent the cities of Hoosick Fall, New York and Petersburgh, New York, as well as the Pennsylvania counties of Bucks and Montgomery, in class action lawsuits over PFOA and PFOS contaminated water.
If your community is suffering from benzene pollution, our experienced team of environmental attorneys is here to help. We will work to make polluters pay to clean up their mess, and ensure your community gets the medical care and monitoring it needs.
Our attorneys are intimately knowledgeable with both federal and state law involving asbestos exposure and disease. We can provide you with the legal guidance you need to file an asbestos lawsuit in California.
Between 1999 and 2017, more than 27,000 people in California died from asbestos-related diseases. Of these, nearly 5,100 deaths were due to mesothelioma. (1)
More than 1,770 people died from the asbestos-exposure disease asbestosis. In addition, an estimated 20,400 people died from asbestos-exposure lung cancer. (2)
Counties with the greatest number of deaths due to asbestos-related diseases were: (3)
People who worked around asbestos in California were often in the trades. You typically had frontline exposure to asbestos when doing your jobs. You also could bring the asbestos home on your clothes to your families. Here are some of the types of jobs that left people like you at the highest statistical risk of asbestos exposure:
Our attorneys in California are experienced in the laws that govern how companies that manufactured, sold, and used asbestos were required to operate to warn those exposed to asbestos, including talcum powder, about the hazards they were encountering. (4)
In California, if you have been exposed to asbestos in shipyards, construction sites, manufacturing plants, or other high-risk fields, we are prepared to confront the companies that were responsible for the asbestos products. They will have highly experienced attorneys working for them, but we have made it our priority to know the asbestos regulations for California inside and out. (5)
We have made it our mission to pay attention to victims of asbestos exposure for nearly 40 years. No one who has been injured by asbestos exposure should have to endure the consequences alone and unassisted.
If you have been diagnosed with mesothelioma or another asbestos exposure disease in California, you have only one year from the date of that diagnosis to file a personal injury lawsuit. Depending on your specific circumstances, this statute of limitations could vary. Seeking the guidance of an experienced California mesothelioma attorney is advised. (6)
Diagnosed with mesothelioma? Contact us now for a free consultation and more information about your legal options.
Get a Free Case ReviewChances are you will need to work with your attorney to file lawsuits against numerous defendants. You may have been exposed to asbestos in more than one location or to products made by more than one manufacturer. Each and every company that failed to safeguard your health with proper warnings and precautions could be held responsible for your pain and suffering.
Attorneys in our California office have been winning cases for clients for more than a decade. We have represented thousands of victims of asbestos exposure and have recovered compensation for them in the aggregate of many millions of dollars.
Some of our California verdicts and settlements include:
Our knowledgeable California asbestos lawyers work out of our office in Los Angeles, in Century City, roughly three miles from Westwood and the University of California — Los Angeles campus. Weitz & Luxenberg has offices nationwide, and we have been representing people harmed by asbestos exposure for nearly 40 years.
We can provide you with comprehensive knowledge about asbestos and talcum powder, as well as the industries that put people’s health at risk for asbestos-related diseases. If you are facing this type of situation, we encourage you to contact our California office. You will likely work with one of these experienced California mesothelioma attorneys:
Benno Ashrafi oversees the asbestos practice at Weitz & Luxenberg in California. He joined us in 2011 to help our Los Angeles office assemble a driven, client-focused team of personal-injury lawyers, each with his or her own track-record of success in asbestos-cancer/mesothelioma litigation.
Alexandra Shef joined W&L in 2015 to focus exclusively on mesothelioma and asbestos-related cancer cases.
Josiah Parker is an attorney in our California office and a member of the Asbestos Litigation group there.
Tyler Stock is an associate attorney in our Asbestos Litigation group.
A: California has miles of coastline, which is where you can find shipyards. The shipbuilding industry is notorious for exposing people to asbestos. Everyone who builds, maintains, and repairs ships may have been exposed to asbestos.
Also, California has other industries that expose people to asbestos, such as oil refineries, construction work, and the auto industry. Even people who do not work in these industries may be exposed to asbestos if they repair their own cars or remodel their own homes.
Many of the individual products used in these fields contain asbestos, such as brake linings, boilers, fireproofing materials, and insulation. Anyone who is exposed to asbestos through any of the products containing it is at risk of developing an asbestos related illness.
California is also the most populated state in the nation with 40,000,000 people. With such a highly inhabited state and so many industries linked to asbestos products and manufacturing, it is not surprising the state ranks high in the number of asbestos exposure related deaths, such as asbestosis and mesothelioma.
A: Yes, we won a $25 million trial verdict on behalf of a client who developed testicular mesothelioma cancer.
Our client was a former Iranian oil refinery worker. He developed testicular mesothelioma after being exposed to asbestos at oil refineries and fields in Iran.
The jury awarded $14 million to our client for his past and future pain and suffering and $11 million to his wife of more than 50 years.
A jury in Los Angeles, California, found that the negligence of Fluor Enterprises, Middle East Fluor, and the National Iranian Oil Co. contributed to our client’s risk of developing mesothelioma as well as his ultimate diagnosis of testicular mesothelioma.
Our client worked in the Iranian Oil industry from roughly 1960 to 1979. Our client was regularly exposed to asbestos as a bystander.
He and his wife moved to Los Angeles in 1981. In 2017, he was diagnosed with testicular mesothelioma, a rare form of this cancer.
A: Most of our clients who have been diagnosed with mesothelioma are unaware of each and every moment of their asbestos exposure. They may have been exposed to asbestos throughout their lifetime. They may not realize how many products and places contain asbestos. The diagnosis is often shocking to them.
An attorney who specializes in handling asbestos and mesothelioma cases knows the history of asbestos use and manufacturing in the United States. We know the companies that manufactured the products.
We also know if the companies have changed hands, filed for bankruptcy, merged with another company, or changed their names. They’re trying to fly under the radar so they won’t be held accountable.
At Weitz & Luxenberg, we have been handling these cases for nearly 40 years. We know who the responsible companies are.
We’ve been following them for decades, and we are prepared to call them out and hold them responsible for their conduct. They should have warned people about the dangers of asbestos exposure and safeguarded their health.
Asbestos litigation is complex. People diagnosed with mesothelioma or other asbestos-exposure-related illnesses really should seek out attorneys who specialize in this litigation.
Attorneys who are generalists do not have the knowledge and expertise needed to represent clients successfully. The companies who are defendants in these types of cases hire the best attorneys they can, and only attorneys specializing in asbestos litigation are prepared to win lawsuits against these defendants.
A: Having a presence in California matters. We have a real office. People can find us. We are right here and available 24/7.
Also, a California attorney specializing in asbestos litigation knows all of California’s specific laws and statutes regarding asbestos. These laws and statutes can vary from state to state.
Because our asbestos and mesothelioma attorneys know California laws regarding asbestos, we don’t ever need to refer cases out. When clients diagnosed with mesothelioma come to us for help, they don’t need to look any further.
We are prepared to handle their case personally, and all of our attorneys are fully prepared to offer the best representation possible. We also have a solid history of winning.
Hear From Our Clients
I would highly recommend Weitz & Luxenberg to anyone who has mesothelioma. This is a law firm that goes above and beyond for their clients. They certainly did for us.”
Sue Crawford
The following California sites are recognized for processing, using, or otherwise exposing people to asbestos. Asbestos offenders include shipyards, power stations, refineries and manufacturing plants, chemical companies, hospitals, universities and colleges, and buildings. 
Updated February 2025
Weitz & Luxenberg is currently accepting clients who received a first generation Smith & Nephew Journey BCS knee and subsequently needed to undergo a revision, or replacement, surgery or have been advised by their doctor they need to undergo a revision surgery due to femoral component loosening. We invite you to contact us for more information about your legal options.
If you have undergone a knee replacement surgery, are having problems, and are not sure whether you received a first generation Smith & Nephew Journey BCS knee, we encourage you to ask your doctor which knee replacement model you received. Depending on your specific implant, you may be able to seek compensation.
Revision surgeries are costly. You may also need to undergo follow-up treatment and physical therapy.
You may not be able to earn a living if your knee complications keep you disabled at home. Your total medical costs could become exorbitant.
Smith & Nephew voluntarily recalled its first generation Journey BCS Knee System on June 13, 2018. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration later categorized this recall as Class 2. (1) (2)
The manufacturer indicated in its Urgent Field Safety Notice that this knee was failing as a higher rate than other primary total knee arthroplasty implants. It noted that data in two joint registries “indicate that the first generation JOURNEY BCS Knee System has a revision rate over 1.5 times the primary total knee arthroplasty device class average revision rates reported in those registries.” (3) (4) (5)
In its Urgent Field Safety Notice Smith & Nephew asked customers to inspect inventory and locate and quarantine affected, unused devices. (6) (7) (8)
In its Urgent Field Safety Notice, Smith & Nephew said the affected product was its first-generation Journey BCS, which was introduced to the market in 2005. The company phased this model out of production between 2013 and 2014. (9) (10)
Smith & Nephew said its “analysis of available post-market surveillance data suggests that patients that have been implanted with a first generation JOURNEY BCS Knee System may have a higher risk of requiring a revision earlier than they or their surgeon had expected.” (11) (12)
On July 23, 2018, the United Kingdom issued a medical device alert instructing against implanting Smith & Nephew’s first generation Journey BCS knee device and cautioned physicians to monitor patients regularly for up to 10 years for signs of device loosening. (13) (14)
In addition, the U.K.’s medical device alert notes the National Joint Registry of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland showed the revision rate for this knee device was more than double the average rate for primary total knee replacements. (15) (16)
According to authors of one study partially funded by Smith & Nephew, Smith & Nephew’s first generation Journey BCS had a significantly higher rate of revision than Smith & Nephew’s Journey II knee. The Journey I had a risk of revision over four times higher than the Journey II. (17) (18)
Hear From Our Clients
I chose Weitz & Luxenberg because the firm has a reputation for working really hard. I went with them because I didn’t want just anybody representing me. I felt that, if I was going to sue, I wanted a firm that had a lot of experience and a lot of resources. I wanted the big guns.”
Nina Young
Weitz & Luxenberg has been litigating cases involving defective medical devices for decades. As a national firm, we are prepared to handle large-scale medical device litigation across the country.
Our attorneys make it their mission to help clients harmed by defective medical products any medical device corporations create and promote. They are specially trained to handle complex medical device lawsuits.
If you were implanted with a defective knee replacement, we may be able to seek appropriate compensation on your behalf. Over the years, we have secured millions of dollars on behalf of clients injured by faulty medical devices.
For more information, we encourage you to contact us at (917) LAWYERS.
Institutions that have not taken actions to stop abuse by teachers, priests, coaches, or doctors need to be held accountable for their failure to act and to protect the children who are in their care.
Statistics show that children are more likely to be sexually abused by someone they know rather than by a stranger.
Under the guise of working to help the child, this person exploits the relationship and sexually abuses the child. Often, the abuser is part of a larger institution. That institution has a responsibility for the actions of that abuser, and to make an appropriate response, if there are allegations of improper conduct.
Unfortunately, many institutions do not help the victim but move to shield the abuser. This is done to protect the reputation of the institution, to try to shield it from financial responsibility, or to avoid litigation. Complaints are ignored, records are hidden, and rather than being punished, accused child abusers are moved from one position to another.
One of the institutions with a long history of covering up sexual abuse is the Roman Catholic Church. Priests would force children to perform sexual acts, telling them it was important to save their souls. The priests threatened the children if they didn’t comply or if they told anyone what was happening to them.
This systematic approach within the church has led to numerous lawsuits being filed on behalf of the survivors of sexual childhood abuse. Priests and church administrators are now being held accountable for years of ignoring abuse.(1) (2)
If your child has been sexually abused while attending an institution or organization, contact us today to understand your legal rights.
Get a Free Case ReviewThe Boy Scouts of America (BSA) has already paid out millions of dollars to victims of child sex abuse who were sexually abused by scout leaders.(3)
While the BSA did keep records of abuse complaints against volunteer leaders, it did not act on those complaints.
The failure to follow-up on complaints is particularly disturbing because not only did it allow the abuser to continue his actions, but it also reinforced the survivor’s trauma in not being believed and not being supported.
By failing to put proper hiring screening procedures into place or to monitor the actions of these employees, child have been left open to harm.
And by failing to keep and share records of reports of abuse between other schools in their districts, and in other jurisdictions, schools have put children at risk.
They are under the influence of coaches, assistant coaches, trainers and doctors. These authority figures have almost unlimited access to the young people on the team. And, they have the added power of controlling when and if the athlete will be able to compete.
Authority figures in a child’s athletic world have enormous power and can use that power to sexually abuse a child. That abuse risk is greatly increased if athletic administrators and governing leagues do not have anti-abuse policies in place and don’t react quickly to accusations of sexual abuse.
As the example of the scandal with the USA Gymnastics women and the team doctor hired to care for them has shown the depth of the problem. The young women were lied to about what was being done, told it was necessary, and notified that if they complained about the abuse they were undergoing, they would be dropped from the team.(4)
Has your child suffered from sexual abuse while at a school or other institution? Contact us today for a free case review.
Get a Free Case ReviewIn this new world, a child has to rely on an authority figure to know how to act. The leadership at the camp has to actively screen employees to keep potential abusers out and monitor all their employees.
Leadership has to be trained to know the warning signs of childhood sexual abuse and to take action if abuse is suspected. If not, the organization must be held responsible.
Children being placed in detention centers are in a completely strange, new environment where they have very little control over what is happening. Any authority figure is totally in charge and has the power of punishment if the child disobeys a command. This is a prime opportunity for a child abuser to take advantage of a victim.
This is a situation where the burden of prevention falls very heavily on the administrators of the facility. There have to be strong policies in place, and followed, to handle sexual abuse. Administrators must be trained for warning signs and must be ready to take action. Failure to do so can lead to trauma for the child and lawsuits for the facility.
The term “child sex abuse” can cover a wide range of actions which are taken against minors. Because the victim are minors, by definition, they cannot consent to these actions. They are forced, or coerced, or persuaded to perform a sexual act.
Contact acts are those which specifically involve touching, including fondling, masturbation, and actual sex.(1) It is estimated that as many as 1 in 20 boys, and 1 in 4 girls, are sexually abused before the age of 18.(2)
Childhood sexual abuse is a major topic of concern today. Reports of abuse of children by adults who are supposed to help and protect them are often in the news. Often, these perpetrators are representatives of organizations and activities your family attends. These sex abusers include:
The rampant numbers of child sex abuse cases leads to the recognition of a great need for both treating and compensating the past survivors –– and for preventing new abuses.
The very essence of childhood sexual abuse is to hide the act. Children are told they must not tell. There are threats of punishment if they do so. Threats that may be addressed against the children or even their families.
Commonly, the abuser is someone who is in a position of authority and a child is conflicted. The victim feels that what is happening is wrong, but is told by the abuser that it is a good or necessary thing.
Adding to this, survivors often believe if they tell, no one will believe them. This belief is often supported by the fact that when they do tell, nothing is done by the authorities. So, survivors suppress the memories of the assault.
If you were abused as a child, you need help in trying to identify the circumstances and building a clear narrative of who harmed you and what the perpetrator did to you.
Survivors of childhood sexual abuse are not to blame, did nothing wrong, and deserve help and support in their quest to recover. Organizations that allowed abusers to work within the system, and did nothing to stop the abuse, need to be held accountable.
Were you or your loved one a victim of child sex abuse? Contact us today for a free case review.
Get a Free Case ReviewThe stress of suppressing these memories can lead victims to start having physical and emotional problems as an adult. “In one long-term study, as many as 80% of young adults who had been abused meet the diagnostic criteria for at least one psychiatric disorder at age 21. These young adults exhibited many problems, including depression, anxiety, eating disorders, and suicide attempts.”(3)
Problems with sleeping or problems with intimacy, eating disorders, alcoholism, and drug use are common. Problems with relating to people and concentrating also affect a survivor’s life may also indicate past sexual assault. Working with an experienced therapist may help to unlock blocked memories.
Many survivors of childhood sexual assault suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as they struggle to recover from what happened to them. Repressing the memories is not uncommon. These repressed memories may not surface until the survivor has reached middle age.
The amount of time it may take for these memories to surface present problems for many reasons. The longer it takes for survivors to remember what happened, the more severe the physical and psychological problems they are experiencing may become. When survivors are ready to report the crime and take legal action, they may run into the statute of limitations which could block them from any action in the courts.
The Child Victims Act improves their odds of obtaining compensation and a measure of justice.
On February 14, 2019, Governor Cuomo signed the Child Victims Act. This law extends the time that a survivor has to report the abuse they were subject to as a child. Now, criminal charges can be brought until the survivor turns 28- years-old, and civil lawsuits can be filed until the survivor is 55-years-old.
Included in the law is a “look-back window.” It provides a period for complaints to be filed that had previously been blocked by New York State’s statute of limitations. The look-back window provides a much needed opportunity for survivors to seek justice from the courts.
The responsibility for the abuse that happened lies not only with the abuser but the organization that turned a blind eye to what the abuser was doing.
When a report of sexual abuse is made, too often the organization covers up the activity. Complaints and charges are ignored and nothing is done about the abuse. Rather than being punished, the abuser is simply moved to another part of the organization.
When the organization ― church, school, facility, or scout troop ― knows or has reason to know that abuse is taking place, it has a responsibility to protect the child and act to stop the abuse. If the organization doesn’t, it can be held liable. The organization can be forced to pay civil damages to help make the survivor on the road to healing.
Victims of childhood sexual abuse suffer long-term effects that can impact their mental health in adulthood. Survivors of childhood sexual abuse are more likely to suffer from drug abuse, have PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), and experience a major depressive episode as an adult.(1)
It requires years of counseling and self-work to even begin to overcome these problems. The organizations and institutions who allowed this abuse to occur, and continue, should be held responsible for the damage they wrought and compensate survivors for the trauma they’ve suffered, and continue to suffer.
Need a lawyer to help you? We would feel privileged if you choose W&L. For a free consultation and more information about your legal options, please contact us today.
(917) LAWYERSWeitz & Luxenberg has assembled a team of attorneys to help the survivors of childhood sexual abuse. These attorneys have years of experience in advocating for the rights of our clients and possess the special skills needed to work with survivors of sexual abuse.
Child sex abuse is defined as any act between an adult and a minor which forces the child to engage in a sexual act or any sexual contact.
The effects on the child survivor are long-term, taking years for victims to recognize what happened to them and recover. This long-term recovery can run into statute of limitations restrictions which end up denying the survivor of their legal rights for criminal and civil prosecution.
Weitz & Luxenberg has filed lawsuits against organizations and institutions on behalf of survivors of child sex abuse. These organizations, who knew or should have known that their representatives were abusing children, did nothing to protect the children. Instead, they choose to protect their organizations.
On July 26, 2018, the manufacturer of Dual-Ended Combat Arms earplugs, 3M Company, agreed to pay the U.S. military $9.1 million to resolve allegations that 3M Company knowingly supplied the U.S. military with a defective product. In entering the settlement, 3M Company made no admissions of wrongdoing and no determinations of liability were made.(1) (2)
Although the company admitted no wrongdoing, individual U.S. servicemen and women are filing lawsuits against 3M Company, alleging that 3M and its predecessor, Aearo Technologies, Inc., were aware that the earplugs were too short to provide hearing protection when inserted as directed, and lied about the earplugs’ safety.
Now, many U.S. servicemen and servicewomen may be paying the price.(3)
If you have been diagnosed with significant hearing loss or tinnitus after being deployed in the U.S. military between 2003-2015 and being issued and using 3M Dual-Ended Combat Arms earplugs, Weitz & Luxenberg may be able to help you. You may be able to receive financial compensation for the hearing damage itself as well as past and future lost wages if the hearing damage has impaired your ability to work.
Hear From Our Clients
[E]veryone at Weitz & Luxenberg [was] very nice to me. They showed me great respect the entire time. They didn’t see me as a number. They saw me as an individual in need of help. I have nothing but positive feelings about the help I received and about the people who gave it.”
James Pickard
Dual-Ended Combat Arms earplugs were intended for use by military personnel.(4) One side, with the olive-colored end of the plug in the ear, was intended to provide a block to all sound.(5)
The other, yellow-colored side was purportedly intended to reduce loud impulse sounds, such as an explosion, but allow a person to hear quieter sounds, such as someone’s voice when giving a command.(6)
In at least one lawsuit, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran says he was issued and used 3M Dual-Ended Combat Arms earplugs as directed in active military duty and training. As a result of product design defect, as well as failure to warn and negligence by 3M, among several other claims, he alleges that he is now suffering from hearing damage.(7)
According to the lawsuit, the design of the earplug is inherently defective. If a person inserts the earplug according to the instructions that come with it, “the edge of the third flange of the non-inserted end of the earplug presses against the wearers’ ear canal and folds back to its original shape…”(8)
Ultimately, the seal of the earplug inside the ear canal becomes loose, though this may not be detectable by the wearer. When loose, the earplug does not provide adequate protection from noise. This is true no matter which end the person inserts into an ear.(9)
Without a snug fit, military personnel were not protected from potential damage to their hearing.(10)
The False Claims Act comes into play when a federal contractor, such as 3M for the Dual-Ended Combat Arms earplugs, is doing business with the federal government and is accused of perpetrating fraud. According to the U.S. Department of Justice announcement publicized in July 2018, the $9.1 million settlement resolved “allegations that 3M violated the False Claims Act by selling or causing to be sold defective earplugs to the Defense Logistics Agency” without any admission of liability by defendants.(11)
In the case of the 3M Dual-Ended Combat Arms earplugs, “the United States alleged that 3M, and its predecessor, Aearo Technologies, Inc., knew the CAEv2 [Combat Arms Earplugs, Version 2] was too short for proper insertion into users’ ears and that the earplugs could loosen imperceptibly and therefore did not perform well for certain individuals.”(12)
“The United States further alleged that 3M did not disclose this design defect to the military.” (13)
According to the qui tam (whistleblower) portions of the False Claims Act, a private party was permitted to sue on behalf of the federal government against the 3M Company.(14)
If an earplug does not work the way it is supposed to, hearing damage can occur. Hearing loss can be partial to full, and range from mild to profound. Even moderate hearing loss can mean someone cannot hear another person speaking at a normal level.(15)
As well as hearing loss, hearing damage can also include tinnitus. Tinnitus is a symptom of an underlying condition, often related to hearing loss. People with tinnitus may perceive a ringing, buzzing, roaring, hissing, or other types of noise in their ears not related to actual external sounds.(16)
As a national firm experienced in representing clients injured by defective devices, Weitz & Luxenberg is prepared to file appropriate lawsuits on behalf of servicemen and servicewomen harmed by 3M’s dual-ended Combat Arms earplugs. One of our attorneys is serving on the Plaintiffs’ Executive Committee for this litigation.
If you were diagnosed with significant hearing loss or tinnitus after using these earplugs during military deployment between 2003 and 2015, we may be able to help you.
In 2013, Weitz & Luxenberg achieved a multimillion dollar settlement against a manufacturer of cochlear implant devices. These defective devices required explanation and re-implantation with a new cochlear implant device, subjecting clients to serious risks associated with this surgery, including hearing loss.
Since its founding more than 30 years ago, Weitz & Luxenberg has won more than $12 billion in verdicts and settlements on behalf of clients injured by defective drugs and medical devices.
It is a particular problem for municipalities that use retention ponds to catch runoff — turning the sediment in those ponds into potential hazardous waste. As a result, when those ponds need dredging for maintenance or other reasons, the costs of disposal of the waste increase exponentially, in some parts of the country as high as 10 times what it would cost to dispose of the sediment if the coal tar waste was not present.
Someone will have to pay these costs: It should be the polluters responsible for causing the contamination. It should not be the taxpayers.
Coal tar pavement sealants are used to protect paved surfaces like driveways and parking lots, but they wear out. Sunlight and the elements attack these coatings continuously. Tires and snowplows abrade their surfaces into fine particles that are blown away by wind or washed away when it rains. That is why the sealants are often reapplied every few years.
But these particles, laden with PAHs, do not simply disappear. They collect in stormwater retention ponds and other management devices. As a result, when cities dredge their ponds, which they routinely do, they have to test for PAHs in the sediment and, when found, they must spend considerable sums of money to dispose of the PAHs-contaminated sediment. For example, one city in Minnesota, after determining that three stormwater ponds were contaminated with PAHs, spent more than $250,000 to safely dispose of the contaminated sediment. To give an idea of the scope of the problem, there are about 30,000 of these ponds in the state of Minnesota alone.
The U.S. Geological Survey identified an unusual trend: PAH concentrations are increasing in many urban ponds, lakes, and rivers in the United States, even as concentrations of other contaminants are decreasing. For example, the City of Austin, Texas, found concentrations of PAHs in sediment samples collected from small tributaries and drainage structures in largely residential areas that were as high as those found in soil samples at some Superfund sites.
A former Assistant United States Attorney and Assistant Chief of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Environmental Crimes Section, Ms. Greenwald today heads the Weitz & Luxenberg Environmental Toxic Torts and Consumer Protection Litigation group. She joined Weitz & Luxenberg in 2005 and has since then led her team to several notable triumphs.
The USGS has published alarming information about PAHs released from refined coal tar used in pavement sealants. The coal tar may now be the largest active source of PAHs in the United States. Sealants made with refined coal tar emit more PAHs into the environment every year than the entire U.S. vehicle fleet. Also, this sealant waste is the largest source of PAH contamination in urban lakes, accounting for more than half of the PAHs found in those lake sediments, and they are the primary cause of the upward trend in PAH concentration levels in urban lake sediments since the 1960s.
As a result, states like Minnesota and Washington started banning the use of coal tar sealants — but that hasn’t eliminated the problem as the existing sealant coat continues to degrade.
Weitz & Luxenberg has filed lawsuits on behalf of eight municipalities in Minnesota against coal tar refiners for marketing and selling its byproduct loaded with PAHs — which inevitably has migrated to their stormwater ponds — and for the increased dredging costs the cities have incurred and will incur going forward in the management of their stormwater ponds.
Weitz & Luxenberg’s attorneys have experience representing cities and states that have been impacted by pollution.
For example, in a case against the petroleum industry for contaminating the nation’s groundwater with a gasoline additive called methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE), our law firm successfully sued and settled lawsuits brought by over 150 municipal water providers for the cost of treatment necessary to remove MTBE from drinking water supplies.
W&L has now grown into one of the largest personal injury and mass tort law firms in the Philadelphia and New York areas. Our outlook is both local and national, so our clients in Pennsylvania get the appropriate representation.
We have a strong local presence in Pennsylvania. Some of our attorneys live and work in Pennsylvania. The local legal community knows us. W&L attorneys are in court frequently, and we have relationships with the judges and standing mediator. When we are dealing with Pennsylvania jurors, we relate to them as part of our own community.
Our mesothelioma lawyers who handle our Pennsylvania cases are fully prepared to represent people who have been diagnosed with mesothelioma throughout the state and in neighboring regions.
With offices near Philadelphia, we know the region very well. Our specialized attorneys have in-depth knowledge of and experience with Pennsylvania law and asbestos litigation.
We also have a strong presence on the national asbestos litigation scene. W&L is the leading plaintiffs’ asbestos firm in New York City — one of the most-active jurisdiction in the world for talcum powder and asbestos cases.
The massive verdicts we get for our clients in NYC give us leverage when we are negotiating with the same offending companies in Pennsylvania. Our reputation and size lets us dominate in many legal settings.
Diagnosed with mesothelioma? Contact us now for a free consultation and more information about your legal options.
Get a Free Case ReviewAttorneys from Weitz & Luxenberg have been helping clients locally for more than 20 years. We are proud to say that we have successfully obtained financial compensation for thousands of victims.
Our attorneys regularly receive millions of dollars in verdicts and settlements for our clients. Firmwide, W&L settlements and verdicts total $26 billion.
Some of our Pennsylvania settlements include victories for:
Hear From Our Clients
Weitz & Luxenberg, these guys aren’t charlatans. They aren’t greedy. They’re humanitarians. Genuine humanitarians. They’re on a quest to help people. They really are. The help I received from Weitz & Luxenberg was incredible. And it came at a time when I needed it the most because of the very bad situation I was in, both in regards to my health and finances.”
Jim Kress
Between 1999 and 2017, more than 17,710 people in Pennsylvania died from asbestos-related diseases. Of these, 3,257 deaths were due to mesothelioma.(1)
More than 1,500 people died from a disease called asbestosis. In addition, more than 13,025 died from asbestos lung cancer.(2)
As you might suspect, the greatest number of deaths from these diseases occurred in the more industrialized regions of the state, including:(3)
Counties in Pennsylvania with the greatest number of asbestos-related deaths include:
Historically, many building products and insulation materials contained asbestos in homes. Most of these kinds of products made today do not contain asbestos.(4)
Common asbestos-containing products may include:
If you have an older home, you may have some of these products in your home. However, if those products are in good condition, you are advised to leave them alone. Asbestos has also been found in talcum powder products sold in the state of Pennsylvania.
Problems arise when these items are damaged or disturbed. Airborne asbestos fibers that you breathe in, such as those found in talcum powder, are hazardous and can lead to some very serious diseases.
Certain parts of your car may also contain these fibers. Working on cars, and replacing certain parts, may expose you to asbestos. These automobile parts include:
The following sites in Pennsylvania are well-known for using, processing, or exposing people to asbestos. Many are located in and around the Philadelphia area. Locations include shipyards and industrial sites such as chemical companies and manufacturing sites, power stations, and refineries.
The attorneys who work out of our Cherry Hill, New Jersey office are very knowledgeable about mesothelioma and asbestos exposure in Pennsylvania.
Should you decide to retain W&L to represent you, you may have the opportunity to work with one of these experienced attorneys:
Most of the cases in which he plays an active role are those involving either asbestos exposures (mesothelioma, lung cancer, asbestosis) or injuries caused by dangerous pharmaceuticals and medical devices — with regard to the former, some of the verdicts he has obtained are among the highest ever brought in against U.S. asbestos defendants.
Leonard F. Feldman runs our asbestos litigations in Pennsylvania and New Jersey from our offices in Cherry Hill, N.J.
F. Alexander Eiden is an attorney in our Asbestos Litigation group.
Mary Grabish Gaffney concentrates on representing clients suffering asbestos-related illnesses as well as those alleging other forms of personal-injury harm.
Our attorneys work with you or your family to obtain your medical records and prove your asbestos-related diagnosis. During this time, we thoroughly investigate all potential sources of asbestos exposure, including your worksites and other relevant locations, and speak with any necessary witnesses. Our attorneys diligently pursue your claims through deposition testimony and affidavits. We also request all available documents to support your claims, such as your employment records.
Start your legal journey by contacting our experienced attorneys. We diligently investigate the details of your asbestos exposure to pursue all applicable claims on your behalf, ensuring you receive the justice and compensation you deserve. In Pennsylvania, defendants can include liable product manufacturers and suppliers, premises defendants, and contractors. In addition to these types of claims, plaintiffs can bring asbestos claims against their Pennsylvania employers.
While pursuing your lawsuit, your attorneys zealously advocate on your behalf to settle all potential claims with defendants. You can rely on your attorneys to reach an agreement with defendants and provide an opportunity for you to review and consent to settlement offers.
Updated February 2025
