All AFFF lawsuits seeking judgment against the manufacturers of firefighting foam have been consolidated into an MDL in the District of South Carolina. The process of MDLs may be unfamiliar to you, but these legal proceedings offer many benefits to individuals injured by the toxins in firefighting foam. 

About Multidistrict Litigations

Instead of filing a class action lawsuit that combines all plaintiffs into a single entity, an MDL consolidates separate cases for administrative purposes, without losing the merits of each complainant. An MDL helps the courts avoid duplication of discovery and achieve consistent pretrial rulings while conserving counsel and judiciary resources. 

Approving or denying an MDL is the job of the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (MDL Panel, for short). This collection of judges determines whether the claims include common questions of fact and should be transferred to a single federal district for coordinated, consolidated pretrial proceedings. The MDL Panel also selects the judge or judges and the court. 

For most MDLs, a bellwether trial or trials follow the discovery and pretrial processes. These proceedings test how juries will rule on the facts of the case and help assess the strength of the MDL. Bellwether trials are instrumental for moving a case forward and shedding light on future litigations.

AFFF Products Liability MDL

The MDL Panel ordered the transfer of all AFFF federal lawsuits to the consolidated litigation in December 2018. The MDL-2873, or Aqueous Film-Forming Foams Products Liability Litigation, was assigned to the U.S. Federal Court in the District of South Carolina under Judge Richard M. Gergel. 

This MDL currently includes more than 6,000 pending actions involving environmental pollution and personal injury claims. Cases are continually filed and transferred to the district court as qualified individuals join the MDL. A lead counsel will coordinate the initial discovery and pretrial processes, but the original legal team you filed your claim through will remain your points of contact to answer questions and discuss your case. 

The defendants of the MDL include a variety of fire foam manufacturers. These companies are named during the final steps in filing the AFFF lawsuit. Examples of manufacturers being sued for personal injuries caused by exposure to toxins in AFFF include:

Any manufacturer on this list should be held liable for producing these hazardous foams and misleading firefighters about the possible health risks of exposure. The AFFF MDL provides strength in numbers, and when your case is handled by a competent, caring law firm, juggernaut corporations like 3M and DuPont cannot continue to stall proceedings or escape responsibility.