Consumers Seek Class-Action Status in Teflon Lawsuits
Oppenheim Pilelsky and Kluger Peretz spearheading nationwide effort
(Des Moines, Iowa, April 21)— Hearings are underway in
Iowa to determine if Teflon cookware users in 15 states can combine
their lawsuits into one big $5 billion dollar class action against
DuPont. A judicial panel in February set federal court in Des
Moines as the place to hear the initial stages of cases from all
of the states, including Florida. The law firms of Kluger Peretz
Kaplan and Berlin and Oppenheim Pilelsky, spearheaded the first
Teflon suits last year. The attorneys are seeking damages on behalf
of millions of people who owned and used Teflon-coated pots and
pans.
The lawsuits argue that DuPont likely knew that a chemical used
to manufacture Teflon, Perflourooctanoic acid, or PFOA, emitted
harmful gases when heated over 680 degrees Fahrenheit, but hid
that fact from consumers. The Science Advisory Board for the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency has previously determined that
PFOA is a likely cancer-causing agent in humans. The lawsuits
don’t aim to show that anyone became sick from being exposed
to heated Teflon, only that DuPont failed to notify people of
potential health risks.
Last year, DuPont agreed to pay $16.5 million to settle government
allegations that the company hid information about the dangers
of PFOA.
Besides Florida, individual lawsuits have been filed in California,
Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New
Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, and
West Virginia.
# # #
Oppenheim Pilelsky, PA (www.oppenheimlaw.com)
is a real estate and litigation boutique law firm focused on high
profile cases often involving medical malpractice, serious bodily
injury, and unfair and deceptive trade practices. Oppenheim Pilelsky,
PA is located at 2500 Weston Road Suite 404, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
33331 (954) 384-6114.
|
