DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The national law firm of Baron & Budd announced today it is investigating potential lawsuits related to a recent finding that The Chemours Company may have contaminated the Cape Fear River in Wilmington, North Carolina with GenX, a dangerous industrial chemical.
The firm’s investigation will be led by Shareholder Scott Summy, one of the most successful water contamination litigators in the U.S. Summy and the Baron & Budd team have won over $1 billion for clients. The team represents both individuals who have been impacted by water contamination, as well as public water authorities throughout the country.
As the leader of Baron & Budd’s environmental practice, Summy has successfully led a number of high-profile lawsuits that have protected the drinking water of millions of Americans. In 1995, Summy met with Wilmington residents whose water was contaminated by a gas additive called MTBE. As a result of those first meetings, Summy filed his first MTBE lawsuit against Conoco on behalf of Wilmington residents. In 1997, the lawsuit was settled after a Wilmington-based jury rendered a multi-million-dollar verdict to cover the costs of medical monitoring. By 2008, Summy won the largest settlement ever against American oil companies for their part in MTBE contamination, on behalf of public water providers – protecting millions of Americans from unsafe drinking water.
Summy and the Baron & Budd team also represented all public water providers in the United States whose water was contaminated with atrazine, a common agricultural chemical used on corn and other crops. On behalf of these water providers, the Group brought claims against Syngenta, the company that makes atrazine, and negotiated a settlement awarding $105 million to over 2,000 water providers.
Additionally, Summy played a key role in litigation resulting from the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. In 2010, he was appointed to the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee and Plaintiffs’ Executive Committee in the Gulf Oil Spill Multi-District Litigation in the Eastern District of Louisiana. In that capacity, he played a critical role in negotiating a settlement and claim procedure for the tens of thousands of individuals, businesses, and governmental entities injured by the oil spill.
GenX was first created by DuPont as a replacement for PFOA, a hazardous chemical compound which was used in the manufacturing of Teflon as well as many other stain-resistant and waterproof consumer goods. GenX has been connected to many of the same health issues as PFOA, such as cancer and reproductive health problems. The Chemours Company was spun off by DuPont in 2015. Today, The Chemours Company is a publicly-traded Fortune 500 Company, listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
“The sad truth is this appears to be a classic case of bait and switch – with a giant chemical corporation swapping one dangerous chemical with another dangerous chemical,” said Summy. “I’ve worked to protect the drinking water of Wilmington residents for more than 20 years. It has been an honor to represent this community, which makes this potential contamination case deeply personal to me and Baron & Budd. We are deeply committed to continuing to protect Wilmington residents’ right to safe drinking water.”
If you live in the Wilmington area and are concerned about your exposure to GenX contamination, you are not alone. To learn more about your legal options, please call Baron & Budd attorney John Fiske directly at (619) 261-4090.
ABOUT BARON & BUDD, P.C.
The law firm of Baron & Budd, P.C., with offices in Dallas, Baton Rouge, New Orleans, Austin, Los Angeles and San Diego, is a nationally recognized law firm with a nearly 40-year history of "Protecting What's Right" for people, communities and businesses harmed by negligence. Baron & Budd's size and resources enable the firm to take on large and complex cases. The firm represents individuals and government and business entities in areas as diverse as dangerous pharmaceuticals and medical devices, environmental contamination, the Gulf oil spill, financial fraud, overtime violations, deceptive advertising, automotive defects, trucking accidents, nursing home abuse, and asbestos-related illnesses such as mesothelioma.
