Teflon lawsuit turns nation's eye to D.M.

Des Moines Register, Jeff Eckoff
Published April 2, 2006

The first round of battles in a $5 billion legal war over the safety of Teflon-coated cookware will begin in Iowa later this month, when at least 16 lawyers who represent more than 72 clients are scheduled to meet in a federal courtroom in Des Moines. The first 16 lawsuits - attorneys predict more will be filed in federal courts across the United States - were transferred to Iowa earlier by a special panel of judges who voted to consolidate them for pretrial proceedings. The move puts two Des Moines judges at the center of a large and complex legal battle expected to ripple through federal courts for years. The lawsuits cover people from Florida, Massachusetts, California and 10 other states that include Iowa. Lawyers say they hope to blanket much of the country with class-action cases that seek reimbursement for anyone who bought Teflon-coated products, and money to monitor them for possible health problems. Wendee Larson, one of six Des Moines residents to join the lawsuit, said she read about the controversy in the newspaper, "and I thought, 'I wonder how many of those I have in my cupboard?' " Court papers allege that E.I. DuPont De NeMours & Co., the company that has sold Teflon since 1946, misled customers and withheld information about a chemical used to make Teflon. DuPont officials have insisted that Teflon-coated products are safe. But the lawsuits describe toxic gases that were emitted when the pans are heated to 464 degrees or higher. Documents allege that the chemicals have been known to cause cancer in laboratory animals, and that fumes have killed pet birds kept in unventilated kitchens. "The claim we're bringing is really a consumer class action related to the failure to warn," said Alan Kluger, a Miami attorney expected to lead the battle against DuPont. "The basic concept is that when corporate America has information, the public has a right to know." Kluger said the lawsuits could lead to "millions and millions of people getting hundreds of dollars, as opposed to tens of thousands of dollars." DuPont's Chicago lawyers could not be reached for comment. A company spokesman issued a written statement Friday that reiterated "products sold under the Teflon brand are safe for their intended uses." A court order from the chairman of the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation says southern Iowa was chosen to referee the Teflon litigation because of its "geographically central location," a lack of any comparably large cases and because Iowa has "the present resources to devote" to a host of complicated pretrial matters. "I honestly have no idea how big of an impact it will be on my schedule," said Chief Judge Ronald Longstaff, who will oversee the cases along with Magistrate Judge Celeste Bremer. DuPont increasingly has battled Teflon-related issues since 2004, when the company agreed to settle a class-action lawsuit filed by about 50,000 people who lived near its West Virginia plant. The residents claimed the company contaminated local water supplies with perfluorooctanoic acid and alleged the chemical was linked to birth defects and other health hazards. DuPont paid $50 million to the residents and agreed to spend $10 million on special water treatment facilities. But company officials did not accept liability and have since maintained that perfluorooctanoic acid, which is used in the production process, is not a danger to the public. A panel of scientists assembled in February by the federal Environmental Protection Agency called perfluorooctanoic acid a likely cancer risk for humans. But federal officials have also said the agency "does not believe there is any reason for consumers to stop using any products because of concerns" over Teflon. The decision followed DuPont's agreement last year to pay $16.5 million to settle government allegations that the company hid information about the chemical's potential dangers. Environmental regulators had sued the company over the West Virginia case.