For Immediate Release:
Alphabet Board to Form Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Advisory Council Comprised of Executives,
Including CEO Sundar Pichai, and Renowned Outside Experts
Settlement Ends Mandatory Arbitration in Harassment, Discrimination and
Retaliation-Related Disputes for all Alphabet Entities
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. – Google parent company Alphabet, Inc. (GOOG, GOOGL) will commit a record-setting $310 million to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives under a settlement with shareholders announced today. The agreement institutes sweeping policy reforms to ensure workplace equity and improve board oversight. It also establishes a DEI Advisory Council comprised of outside experts and Alphabet executives, including Chief Executive Officer Sundar Pichai.
The settlement resolves derivative litigation filed in three jurisdictions, including a derivative lawsuit filed last year against certain Alphabet officers and directors by national law firm Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll. Alphabet stockholders alleged that the tech giant violated their fiduciary duties by enabling a double standard at Alphabet that allowed powerful executives to sexually harass and discriminate against women without consequence. Appointed co-lead counsel, Cohen Milstein represented lead plaintiffs Northern California Pipe Trades Pension Plan and Teamsters Local 272 Labor Management Pension Fund in the lawsuit.
Through the settlement, Alphabet will implement sweeping reforms to the company’s employment policies, eliminating practices that silence victims and implementing measures to fairly apply workplace policies even for the most senior executives. Among other things, the settlement:
- Ends mandatory arbitration in harassment, discrimination and retaliation-related disputes between any Alphabet company and an employee or extended workforce member;
- Limits Google’s use of non-disclosure agreements, so that employees are able to discuss the underlying facts and circumstances of an incident and the reporting process; and
- Calibrates corrective action recommendations across business units to ensure consistent consequences for the same misconduct.
“The settlement fundamentally alters Alphabet’s workplace policies, including eliminating mandatory arbitration in harassment, discrimination and retaliation-related disputes and the use of one-sided non-disclosure agreements that silence victims and enable powerful harassers,” said Julie Goldsmith Reiser, Partner at Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll and one of four plaintiffs’ counsel appointed to lead the global settlement negotiations. “These changes, along with the financial commitment to DEI initiatives, position Alphabet to lead as much in workplace equity as it is does in technology and innovation.”
Alphabet’s $310 million commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion over ten years constitutes the largest public commitment any tech company has made in this regard. The Advisory Council’s oversight of the creation, implementation and ongoing operation of initiatives that support diversity, equity and inclusion will be guided by Hon. Nancy Gertner, a retired federal judge and Harvard Law School lecturer; Grace Speights, global leader of Morgan Lewis’s labor and employment practice and chair of the board of trustees at George Washington University; and Fred Alvarez, a former member of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and monitor of Uber’s settlement with the EEOC. Internal members will include Pichai; Kent Walker (Chief Legal Officer), Melonie Parker (Chief Diversity Officer) and Jen Fitzpatrick (SVP).
The Alphabet settlement also institutes governance measures to ensure that Alphabet’s board is informed of and accountable for overseeing risks arising from sexual harassment by executives and, more broadly, fostering a diverse, equitable and inclusive culture. Key changes include:
- Expanding the Audit Committee’s charter to Audit and Compliance, with quarterly reports to the full board on legal and regulatory compliance; and,
- Preventing employees with 10b5-1 stock purchase plans from amending the plans while they are subject to investigations or a lawsuit for sexual misconduct.
The case name in the Alphabet matter is: In re Alphabet Shareholder Derivative Litigation, Case No. 19CV341522, Superior Court of the State of California in and for the County of Santa Clara. It was heard by Superior Court Judge Brian C. Walsh.
See a copy of the complaint and a copy of the settlement.
Ms. Reiser led the Cohen Milstein team that, earlier this year, received final approval for the $90 million settlement of a derivative lawsuit against the Wynn Resorts Ltd. board of directors. That settlement, stemming from the Wynn board’s alleged failure to properly handle longstanding allegations of sexual assault and harassment by founder Steven A. Wynn, also included landmark corporate governance reforms.
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About Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll
Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC is recognized as one of the premier law firms in the country handling major, complex plaintiff-side litigation. With more than 100 attorneys, Cohen Milstein has offices in Washington, D.C., Chicago, Ill., New York, N.Y., Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., Philadelphia, Pa. and Raleigh, N.C. For additional information, visit www.cohenmilstein.com or call 202.408.4600.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Virginia Governor Ralph S. Northam (D-VA) announced today the reappointment of Cohen Milstein partner S. Douglas Bunch to a second four-year term on the Board of Visitors of William & Mary, the second oldest university – and first law school – in the nation. The appointment comes as the university, like all academic institutions, reimagines what learning looks like in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Serving on William & Mary’s Board of Visitors for the last four years has been an incredible privilege that’s allowed me to give back to an institution that has had such a profound impact on my life,” said S. Douglas Bunch, a Partner at Cohen Milstein and a member of the Securities Litigation & Investor Protection practice group. “I’m grateful to Governor Northam for his continued trust and confidence in me, and I don’t take lightly the responsibility I carry in helping William & Mary navigate a new reality in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
A member of Phi Beta Kappa, Mr. Bunch graduated summa cum laude from William & Mary in 2002, where he earned a B.A. in Government and Classical Studies. Subsequently, Mr. Bunch attended Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education, from which he graduated in 2003 with an Ed.M. in Administration, Planning, and Social Policy. Following his return to William & Mary, Mr. Bunch earned a J.D. from William & Mary Law School in 2006.
Mr. Bunch joined Cohen Milstein in 2006 and became a partner of the firm in January 2016. He is a member of the firm’s Securities Litigation & Investor Protection practice, where he litigates federal securities class actions on behalf of defrauded investors. He was instrumental in successfully litigating the suits that followed in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, including on behalf of public pension funds and other institutions that purchased defectively-issued mortgage-backed securities. His work in the courtroom has been recognized on numerous occasions, most recently by Benchmark Litigation, which named him to its 2019 “40 & Under Hot List,” and Super Lawyers Magazine, which designated him a 2020 “Super Lawyer.”
Mr. Bunch is also co-founder and chairman of Global Playground, Inc., a nonprofit that builds schools in the developing world, and serves on the board of Virginia21, an organization that advocates on behalf of the interests of college and university students in Virginia. In 2011, Mr. Bunch received William & Mary Law School’s inaugural W. Taylor Reveley III award, recognizing alumni who have demonstrated a sustained commitment to public service.
William & Mary is one of eight U.S. institutions to be designated a “public ivy,” and has consistently been ranked by U.S. News & World Report as one of the nation’s top public universities. Included among its alumni are three presidents of the United States, namely Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, and John Tyler. Former Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates currently serves as the university’s Chancellor. The Board of Visitors, which governs the university, is composed of seventeen individuals appointed to four-year terms by the Governor of Virginia.
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About Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC
Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC is a national leader in plaintiff class action lawsuits and litigation. As one of the premier firms in the country handling major complex cases, Cohen Milstein, with 90 attorneys, has offices in Washington, D.C.; Chicago, Ill.; New York, N.Y.; Philadelphia, Pa.; Palm Beach Gardens, Fl.; and Raleigh, N.C.
For Immediate Release
$38 million to benefit non-profit organizations serving Native American farmers and ranchers, and $266 million to fund The Native American Agriculture Fund – Largest Native American Philanthropic Institution
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In light of the Supreme Court’s March 26, 2018 decision declining to hear an appeal over the disposition of $380 million in unclaimed “cy pres” funds from the historic 2011 settlement of Keepseagle v. Vilsack, a decades long battle to resolve claims that the U.S. Department of Agriculture systematically discriminated against Native American farmers and ranchers, has come to a close. Following distribution of approximately $238 million on successful claims in 2012, supplemental payments to prevailing claimants totaling about $76 million have now been issued. In addition, $38 million in immediate cy pres awards is being paid out to non-profit organizations serving Native American farmers and ranchers, which were approved following a rigorous grant-making process, and $266 million will go to the Native American Agriculture Fund, a Trust created as part of the modified settlement empowered to fund programs through non-profit organizations over the next 20 years.
“The modification to the settlement agreement struck a sound balance between distributing some of the funds to those who had been successful claimants before and other funds to serve the broader Indian farming and ranching community,” stated Joseph M. Sellers, Lead Counsel for the plaintiffs and chair of the Civil Rights & Employment practice group at Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll. “In many ways, the creation of the Native American Agriculture Fund trust could turn out to be one of the most lasting legacies of this case because it will create the largest non-profit institution to serve Native Americans in the history of this country. We look forward to seeing the Native American Agriculture Fund move forward to bring benefits to Indian farmers and ranchers beyond what litigation alone has provided.”
Plaintiffs filed Keepseagle in 1999, alleging that since 1981, the USDA systematically denied Native American farmers and ranchers nationwide the same opportunities as white farmers to obtain low-interest rate loans and loan servicing, causing them hundreds of millions of dollars in economic losses. The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia approved a $760 million settlement in April 2011, but payments issued on the initial round of claims in 2012 left roughly $380 million of the settlement undisbursed. Since then, the distribution of the remaining funds has been the subject of extensive negotiations and protracted litigation. Most recently, the U.S. Supreme Court in March declined to hear an appeal to the distribution plans, paving the way for the final payments announced today.
“The conclusion of Keepseagle is a very exciting time for Native American agriculture. Class members and other Native American producers will reap significant benefits from these cy pres funds.” noted Christine E. Webber, plaintiffs’ class counsel, who chaired the grantmaking process and a partner in Cohen Milstein’s Civil Rights & Employments practice, “There is great need in Indian Country for funding worthwhile projects, and even $38 million could not cover every request. The proposals we received, however, demonstrated an engaged and invested interest across Indian Country to ensure that agriculture will sustain Native communities now and in the future.”
“Native American agriculture is at an important moment for investing in meeting the needs of our agriculture producers,” stated Janie Hipp, Executive Director of the Native American Agriculture Fund. “Combining such investments with the continued focus on feeding ourselves will create important new opportunities to solidify our economies, strengthen our communities and improve our access to healthy foods. Important next steps for the Trustees and the Director include developing strategies for grant-making and building a solid administrative office for carrying out the responsibilities of the Fund.”
Case Background
The nationwide class action lawsuit Keepseagle v. Vilsack, No. 99-cv-3119 (DDC) (EGS) was filed in November 1999, and on April 28, 2011 the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia approved a historic settlement between Native American farmers and ranchers and the USDA which required USDA to: 1) pay $680 million in damages to thousands of Native Americans, to 2) forgive up to $80 million in outstanding farm loan debt, and to 3) improve the farm loan services USDA provides to Native Americans. The settlement provided that any unclaimed funds would be distributed to non-profit organizations serving Native American farmers and ranchers, referred to as a “cy pres” distribution.
An extensive outreach campaign and claims process was conducted in 2011, which resulted in over 4300 completed claims, of which over 3600 were approved for payment in 2012. Successful Track A claimants, the vast majority of the claimants, received $50,000 directly, plus $12,500 paid to the IRS on their behalf to offset taxes. Track B claimants received up to $250,000, based upon their actual economic loss. This claims process left $380 million undisbursed.
Years of negotiations followed, and on April 20, 2016 the District Court approved an addendum to the original settlement agreement, reflecting a compromise between two competing goals: paying out more funds to claimants who successfully recovered through the claims process, and maintaining the cy pres distributions for the benefit of the class as a whole. That ruling was appealed to the D.C. Circuit, which affirmed the District Court on May 16, 2017. The Supreme Court then declined to hear the case on March 26, 2018, permitting the modification to the agreement to be implemented.
Under the modified settlement, a supplemental award of $18,500 was paid to each prevailing claimant, along with payment of $2,775 to the IRS on their behalf, to offset taxes owed. Those checks were mailed in late May 2018, and accounted for over $76 million of the remaining funds.
Funded Projects
The modified settlement also allocated $38 million for quick distribution to non-profit organizations serving Native American farmers and ranchers. The grant opportunity was announced in spring 2016, with applications received in summer 2016, and recommendations from class counsel, developed with the assistance of an Advisory Committee, were submitted to the District Court in October 2016. Those recommendations were on hold until the appeals process was completed this spring, and on July 19, 2018 the District Court approved the recommendations.
Pursuant to the modified agreement, qualifying organizations had to have provided business assistance, agricultural education, technical support, or advocacy services to Native American farmers or ranchers prior to November 1, 2010, to support and promote their continued engagement in agriculture, and had to be a recognized non-profit organization, or an instrumentality of a state or federally recognized tribe.
The largest number of projects funded support infrastructure or large equipment purchases, ranging from irrigation projects, to purchasing large farm equipment to be shared by small producers, to building facilities needed to link producers to markets, while other projects focus on providing technical assistance or training. Other approved proposals include regranting to smaller organizations, Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) or similar institutions planning to make loans to farmers or ranchers, as well as addressing legal needs, public policy, or other advocacy on behalf of Native farmers and ranchers and providing scholarships or education to Native American students in agricultural fields. See a complete list of the projects approved for funding.
Given the great need for resources to support the significant interest in agriculture, the remainder of the settlement funds, currently amounting to approximately $266 million, will go to fund the Native American Agriculture Fund. This Trust will be the largest philanthropic institution ever that is dedicated exclusively to serving the Native American community. The Trust, under the leadership of a stellar group of Native American leaders in agriculture, economic development, and philanthropy, who were appointed as Trustees by the Court, and with its initial Executive Director Janie Hipp, will have up to 20 years to distribute funds to non-profit organizations providing business assistance, agricultural education, technical support and advocacy services to Native American farmers and ranchers, to support and promote their continued engagement in agriculture.
About Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC
Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC is a national leader in plaintiff class action litigation. As one of the premier law firms in the country handling major, complex litigation disputes, Cohen Milstein, with more than 100 attorneys, has offices in Washington, D.C., Chicago, IL, New York, NY, Philadelphia, PA, Palm Beach Gardens, FL, and Raleigh, NC. For more information, visit www.cohenmilstein.com or call 202.408.4600.
About the Native American Agriculture Fund
The NAAF is can be reached through Janie Hipp, Executive Director at nativeamericanagriculturefund@gmail.com or 479-313-3339.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Palm Beach, FL – Today, the Human Rights Defense Center (HRDC), the Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County and the law firm of Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll, PLLC, filed suit in federal court challenging the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office’s practice of placing juvenile offenders in solitary confinement.
The complaint, which seeks class-action status and was filed against Sheriff Ric Bradshaw and other Sheriff’s Office employees, notes that most of the juveniles held in solitary at the Palm Beach County Jail “have not been convicted of any crime,” as they are awaiting trial.
“Children do not abandon their constitutional rights at the jail door, and the solitary confinement policy being enforced at the jail is inflicting serious harm to a vulnerable population unable to fight for themselves,” according to Sabarish Neelakanta, litigation director for HRDC.
Also named as a defendant is the Palm Beach County School Board, which is accused of denying educational services to juvenile offenders held at the jail, “including services needed to address their disabilities,” in violation of the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
The plaintiffs in the case include three juvenile offenders, ages 16 to 17, who have been held in solitary confinement at the Palm Beach County jail for periods ranging from 20 days to more than seven months. Some have disabilities, including ADHD.
A motion for a preliminary injunction, filed contemporaneously with the complaint, seeks a court order enjoining the defendants “from holding children at the Jail in solitary confinement and from routinely denying these incarcerated children educational services, including services needed to address their disabilities.”
The lawsuit notes that juveniles held in solitary are confined to small cells, approximately six-by-12 feet, for 23 to 24 hours a day. “The cell contains a combined toilet and sink, a stainless steel desk and bolted-down stool, a steel bed with a thin mattress, and an overhead fluorescent light. The cell is entered through a large metal door which swings out. The door has two small plexiglass windows … which are scratched to such an extent that they are impossible to see through. The door has a metal panel slot that can only be unlocked from outside of the cell, through which food trays are passed.”
Recreation is provided for one hour, usually three days a week, in a caged basketball court that is “surrounded by concrete walls and metal fencing.” Showers are allowed three times per week.
“These children have no meaningful social interaction, educational access, environmental stimulation, basic human contact, access to music or television, and practically no ability to hear or see outside of their cells,” the complaint states.
With respect to educational services, there is a “complete failure to provide access to basic educational services [which denies] those children with disabilities access to special education supports and services, responsibilities shared by the Sheriff’s Office and the School District.”
The juveniles kept in solitary confinement “may receive, at most, packets of work shoved under a cell door or have brief moments to speak with a teacher standing outside of their locked door,” according to the complaint.
It is widely acknowledged that prolonged placement in solitary confinement can result in serious mental health problems and can exacerbate existing problems.
“Children in solitary confinement have committed suicide, developed psychosis and post- traumatic stress disorders, and have experienced major depression, agitation, suicidal ideation, suicidal intent, self-mutilation, and suicidal behavior,” the lawsuit states. “Without immediate intervention, these children will continue suffering inhumane treatment, physical and psycho-logical harm, and acute and long term mental health issues from the prolonged isolation.”
The American Medical Association, the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, the National Commission on Correctional Health Care, and the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges have all called for the end of solitary confinement for juveniles. The United Nations has found that more than 15 days of solitary constitutes a form of torture.
“Solitary confinement is an archaic practice that has been proven to be ineffective and toxic. Children are especially susceptible to the harms of solitary confinement. The circumstances of confinement at the Palm Beach County Jail are among the worst in the nation – the children in confinement are denied nearly all human contact, education and mental health treatment – and left in a locked, cement cell from which they are deprived of sight and sound. These conditions can last from months to a year on end. This practice must stop. We cannot continue to treat children in this manner and expect them to successfully return to their homes, communities and schools,” states Melissa Duncan, supervising attorney of the Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County’s Education Advocacy Project.
“Currently, the public’s attention is focused on the separation of immigrant children from their parents at the border, which is certainly a serious issue,” added HRDC executive director Paul Wright. “But in Palm Beach County, children are not only being separated from their families through incarceration at the county jail, they are being placed in solitary confinement under conditions that violate their rights and constitute a threat to their well-being. The denial of an education is especially egregious since all Florida children are guaranteed the right to a free public education. We have filed suit to halt these human rights abuses.”
“The psychological and physical impact of putting minors in solitary confinement is enormous and can have devastating consequences including post-traumatic stress disorder and suicide,” said Theodore J. Leopold, partner and Co-Chair of the Complex Tort Litigation and Consumer Protection practices at Cohen Milstein. “This lawsuit is the first of its kind in Florida and, by filing it, we hope that our state’s lawmakers finally realize they’re creating a human rights issue. If we want to help our next generation succeed, we need Florida to follow the lead of states like Wisconsin, California, New York and others, and put an end to this cruel policy.”
The suit, which raises claims under federal civil rights statutes, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Rehabilitation Act and IDEA, seeks injunctive and declaratory relief, damages, “compensatory education for education benefits denied,” and attorneys’ fees and costs.
The case is H.C. v. Bradshaw, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, Case No. 9:18cv80810.
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The Human Rights Defense Center, founded in 1990 and based in Lake Worth, Florida, is a non-profit organization dedicated to protecting human rights in U.S. detention facilities. In addition to advocating on behalf prisoners and publishing books and magazines concerning the criminal justice system, HRDC engages in state and federal court litigation on prisoner rights issues, including wrongful death, public records, class actions, and Section 1983 civil rights cases.
Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC is recognized as one of the premier law firms in the country handling major, complex plaintiff-side litigation. With more than 90 attorneys, Cohen Milstein has offices in Washington, D.C., Chicago, Ill., New York, N.Y., Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., Philadelphia, Pa., and Raleigh, N.C. For additional information, visit www.cohenmilstein.com or call 877 515-7955.
The Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County is committed to providing high quality civil legal advice, representation and education to the disadvantaged of Palm Beach County so as to protect their personal safety, enhance their opportunities and living conditions and promote self-sufficiency. Legal Aid’s work helps our clients deal with many of life’s most basic needs: a safe home, enough food to eat, a quality education, and protection against exploitation and discrimination. For additional information, visit www.legalaidpbc.org or call 800-403-9353
For further information, please contact:
Paul Wright, Executive Director
Human Rights Defense Center
(802) 275-8594
pwright@prisonlegalnews.org
Sabarish Neelakanta, General Counsel
Human Rights Defense Center
(561) 360-2523
sneelakanta@humanrightsdefensecenter.org
Melissa Duncan
Supervising Attorney, Education Advocacy Project
Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County, Inc.
(561) 655-8944, ext. 243
mduncan@legalaidpbc.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Federal judge’s ruling impacts farmers, landowners and business owners in four states
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (March 13, 2018) A federal judge in Washington, D.C. ruled today that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers bears responsibility for causing recurrent flooding and damaging farms and property in four Midwest states along the Missouri River: Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska and Kansas. The ruling states that the government must compensate farmers, landowners and business owners for the flood damage, which has been estimated to exceed $300 million.
The case, Ideker Farms et al v. United States of America, was brought by 372 plaintiffs comprised of farmers, landowners and business owners, and has been led by Polsinelli in partnership with Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll.
The mass action lawsuit was originally filed on Mar. 5, 2014 and alleged that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ actions have violated the takings clause of the Fifth Amendment that bars the Government from taking private property without just compensation. Judge Nancy B. Firestone with the United States Court of Federal Claims found in favor of the plaintiffs in five of the six years that the flooding was claimed dating back to 2007, disallowing the flood claims in 2011. The Court found that the Corps’ deprioritized flood control in 2004.
Judge Firestone stated in her Trial Opinion that the evidence established that the Corps’ changes to the river “had the effect of raising the Missouri River’s water surface elevations (“WSEs”) in periods of high flows.” She found that since 2007, the flooding has been among the worst in the history of the river and the Corps’ changes in the management of the river caused or contributed to the flooding. Citing the testimony of plaintiffs’ experts, the Court acknowledged that “recurrent flooding in the Missouri River Basin . . . will continue into the future,” and that increased blocked drainage of farm lands due to higher river levels is a problem.
“As a farmer and landowner who has experienced substantial losses from these floods, I’m extremely pleased with this outcome,” said lead plaintiff Roger Ideker of Ideker Farms in St. Joseph, Mo. “It rightfully recognizes the Government’s responsibility for changing the River and subjecting us to more flooding than ever before.”
Polsinelli Shareholder R. Dan Boulware of the firm’s St. Joseph office served as lead counsel on the case.
“Today is the day the plaintiffs have patiently waited for and have fought for during the past four years. Although we do not concur with the Court’s conclusions regarding the 2011 flood event, we are very pleased with the Court’s conclusions regarding the Corps changes to the river causing flooding, and we are certainly pleased with an outcome that will provide substantial compensation to plaintiffs living along the river who have suffered significant flood damage and losses throughout the past decade,” said Boulware. “It should now be clear that we have a changed river – one that is flood prone. We hope the Corps of Engineers will now do the right thing for our clients and that Congress will also act soon to restore flood control to a higher priority as it was during the last century.”
The ruling also addressed the critical shift in the management of the river by the Corps in 2004 to restore its ecosystem and benefit and create habitat for threatened and endangered species. The court found that the notching of dikes and revetments, as well as the reopening of the historic chutes, which allows the river to meander and erode the bank, created potential flood impacts. These changes to the river, coupled with increased reservoir storage and threatened and endangered species releases from the dams during high river stages below the dams, served to cause or contribute to cause flooding in 2007, 2008, 2010, 2013, 2014 and since.
“For nearly a decade, these individuals have suffered not only serious flood damage, but more critically, threats to their fundamental livelihood,” said plaintiffs’ attorney Benjamin Brown, partner and co-chair of the Antitrust Practice Group at Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll. “Today’s decision reflects what we have been saying since the outset of this litigation – all Americans should share the costs of protecting threatened and endangered species and the entirety of this burden should not be foisted on those who happen to live and work on the river.”
The Ideker Farms, Inc. et al v. United States of America case has two phases. This ruling marks the end of phase one, which began on Mar. 6, 2017, focusing on liability and the cause of the flooding. The trial in the Federal Claims Court began in Kansas City, Mo. before moving to Washington, D.C. It involved 44 plaintiff “bellwether” tracts and more than 90 witness testimonies over the course of the 63-day trial. Closing arguments were held in November and concluded in December. In total, over 100 depositions were taken and in excess of 20 million documents were produced throughout phase one.
The case will next proceed to phase two, where the Court will determine the extent of losses due to the taking.
The plaintiffs are represented by Am Law 100 firm Polsinelli, led by Boulware, who is recognized by his peers as among the top 1 percent of all trial attorneys in the country, Edwin Smith, Seth Wright, Todd Ehlert and Sharon Kennedy. Brown of Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll, one of the nation’s leading plaintiffs’ firm based in Washington, D.C., also supported plaintiffs in this case.
Polsinelli is an Am Law 100 firm with more than 800 attorneys in 20 offices. Ranked #24 for Client Service Excellence1 and #10 for best client relationships2 among 650 U.S. law firms, Polsinelli was also named among the top 20 best-known firms in the nation3. The firm’s attorneys provide value through practical legal counsel infused with business insight, and focus on health care, financial services, real estate, intellectual property, mid-market corporate, labor and employment, and business litigation. Polsinelli PC | In California, Polsinelli LLP
12018 BTI Client Service A-Team Report
22017 BTI Industry Power Rankings
32017 BTI Brand Elite
About Cohen Milstein
Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC is recognized as one of the premier law firms in the country handling major, complex plaintiff-side litigation. With more than 90 attorneys, Cohen Milstein has offices in Washington, D.C., Chicago, Ill., New York, N.Y., Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., Philadelphia, Pa., and Raleigh, N.C. For additional information, call 202.408.4600
New research suggests Cape Fear pollutants are more toxic than originally thought and may be airborne
WILMINGTON, N.C. –DuPont (NYSE: DD) and its former wholly-owned subsidiary, the Chemours Company (NYSE: CC), disregarded internal test results before illegally dumping hazardous chemicals into North Carolina’s Cape Fear River and then mislead the government regulators about its conduct, according to a Consolidated Complaint filed late Wednesday in a closely-watched class-action lawsuit against the chemical giant. The new allegations come just days after independent researchers suggested that GenX, the chemical dumped into the water for decades, is even more toxic than previously known and may also be airborne. Residents, many suffering from cancer and other life-threatening illnesses, are now demanding further independent testing in the wake of these new findings.
The Complaint highlights the discovery of new Fayetteville-region groundwater wells showing significant traces of GenX. As at least one of these wells is situated uphill from the Fayetteville Works industrial facility, the plaintiffs want to determine whether the chemical can be dispersed through the air, as new research suggests is possible.
“It seems that every day we learn more about the danger these substances pose and the extent of Dupont’s and Chemours’ callous disregard for the lives of thousands of North Carolinians,” said Theodore J. Leopold, co-chair of the Consumer Protection Practice and Chair of the Catastrophic Injury & Defective Products Practice at Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll and lead plaintiffs’ attorney in the case. “The scope of the pollution and horrible effects of these chemicals are much more significant than originally thought. We look forward to getting justice for the families who have been harmed by these companies’ irresponsible acts.”
Officials from Chemours seemed to indicate the severity of the GenX pollution last month, announcing their intentions to provide filters to people in the Fayetteville region who get their water from ground wells. Last Thursday, the Environmental Protection Agency announced that it has asked Chemours to test the drinking water by its production facility in West Virginia for GenX, citing GenX contamination near the Fayetteville plant.
“For decades, DuPont and Chemours have failed their basic duty to safely control and dispose of the toxic chemicals used in the Fayetteville Works plant,” said Steve Morrissey, Partner at Susman Godfrey and Interim Co-Lead Counsel for the plaintiffs. “Through this lawsuit, we will make these companies take responsibility for what they have put in the local air and water, for ensuring that the air and water are safe going forward, and for addressing the serious harms their actions have caused.”
The Consolidated Complaint details extensive health problems of many Cape Fear residents who have now joined the case, including diagnoses of colon and stomach cancer, as well as ulcers and cysts on an individual’s liver and intestines, which led to surgeries, hospitalizations and lost income.
Citing a new study by independent researchers at Stockholm University, which suggests that GenX is even more toxic than PFOA, the amended lawsuit filed today alleges that DuPont overlooked the results of its own testing on GenX and illegally discharged the chemical into North Carolina’s Cape Fear River from its Fayetteville Works plant.
On December 15, 2017, plaintiffs’ counsel filed a motion for expedited discovery to take on-site wastewater samples to further determine the extent of GenX water contamination and potential ill health effects in the Fayetteville, N.C. area. Earlier that month, a sampling by North Carolina’s Department of Environmental Quality showed GenX levels in the water by the Fayetteville Works plant had spiked to levels more than 16 times higher than the state’s standards.
DuPont introduced GenX in 2009 as a supposedly safer alternative to PFOA, a chemical it had used for decades to manufacture Teflon and other products in places like North Carolina and West Virginia. The chemical raised health concerns after it seeped into drinking water sources and locals developed cancers, hormonal dysfunction and autoimmune diseases.
Case Background
Since 1980, DuPont and Chemours have been dumping toxic waste from its 2,000-acre Fayetteville Works plant, including GenX and Nafion byproducts, into the Cape Fear River which supplies drinking water to five North Carolina counties with a combined population of over 770,000. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the affected counties — New Hanover, Bladen, Brunswick, Cumberland and Pender — have among the highest concentration of liver disease in the United States. The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services says the rates of liver, pancreatic, testicular and kidney cancers are higher in certain of the five counties than the state averages, and DuPont’s own testing has shown that these chemicals can cause liver, pancreatic, testicular and kidney cancer, liver disease, fetal and birth defects.
Despite conducting multiple internal tests that confirmed the toxicity of GenX, DuPont dismissed its own findings, continued the dumping and never disclosed the existence of the toxic waste or the related test results to residents or local utility companies. The class action lawsuit asserts that DuPont lied to government regulators, claiming it was disposing of GenX safely when in fact it was not. As detailed in the lawsuit, the company even represented to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and state regulators that GenX was sent to an off-site incinerator, a claim later proven to be false.
Chemours admitted publicly to discharging GenX into the North Carolina public water supply in June 2017, after a team of researchers from the North Carolina State University detected the chemical downriver from the Fayetteville Works plant. In September 2017, the North Carolina Division of Water Resources sought to suspend Chemours’ National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit, citing the company’s years-long misrepresentation and failure to disclose the dumping of GenX and Nafion byproducts.
The toxic dumping has not only polluted more than 100 miles of the river but also caused extensive damage to thousands of miles of municipal and residential piping. Chemicals like GenX and Nafion are nearly impossible to eradicate from the water supply once contamination has occurred. They are known to bond with pipes, microbes, plants, animals and sediments and water authorities are not able to filter out the chemicals. To mitigate risks, extensive water filtration is needed at the municipal and residential levels, with removal and replacement of plumbing and appliances inside the home considered the safest and most effective option, potentially costing thousands of dollars for each home.
The class action lawsuit seeks monetary damages and injunctive relief for physical injury, property damage and reduced property values, and the cost of filtering contaminated water and air sustained by residents in New Hanover, Bladen, Brunswick, Cumberland and Pender counties who have been or are currently exposed to the contaminants.
The plaintiffs are represented by partners Theodore J. Leopold and S. Douglas Bunch of Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC and Steve Morrissey and Jordan Connors of Susman Godfrey LLP.
About Cohen Milstein
Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC is nationally ranked and recognized as one of the premier law firms in the country, handling major, complex plaintiff-side litigation. With more than 90 attorneys, Cohen Milstein has offices in Washington, D.C., Chicago, Ill., New York, N.Y., Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., Philadelphia, Pa., and Raleigh, N.C.
About Susman Godfrey
For more than forty years, Susman Godfrey LLP has focused its nationally recognized practice on high-stakes commercial litigation. Susman Godfrey is one of the nation’s leading litigation boutique law firms with offices in Houston, Seattle, Los Angeles and New York.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
West Coast bank settles securities class action pending in the U.S. District Court
for the Central District of California.
Washington, D.C. – Opus Bank (NASDAQ:OPB) will pay $17 million to settle claims that the bank deceived investors about its lending practices. The settlement is subject to notification to investors and court approval. The suit alleges that Opus Bank underwrote risky loans, disregarded credit controls, and lacked adequate resources to monitor its loan portfolio, and hid this information from shareholders. News of the bank’s alleged misconduct resulted in dramatic declines in the price of Opus Bank’s stock, leading to substantial losses for investors, including the Arkansas Public Employees Retirement System (APERS), lead plaintiff in the class action.
“On behalf of the Arkansas Public Employees Retirement System and other members of the class, we are very pleased with this proposed settlement,” said Steven J. Toll, Co-Chair of Cohen Milstein’s Securities Litigation & Investor Protection practice group and lead counsel in the case. “The proposed settlement represents an excellent recovery for investors who we believe were injured due to their investments in Opus Bank,” added Daniel S. Sommers, Co-Chair of Cohen Milstein’s Securities Litigation & Investor Protection practice group, who also served as lead counsel.
In October 2016, reports began to emerge that Opus Bank’s loan portfolio and lending practices were far more risky than what had previously been disclosed to investors. In the ensuing months, as more information was disclosed, Opus Bank’s stock price dropped precipitously. Investors filed a lawsuit in February 2017 after sustaining heavy losses. APERS’ complaint, filed after its appointment as lead plaintiff, alleged that Defendants failed to disclose that: 1) Opus Bank’s credit culture was aggressive, not conservative; 2) Opus Bank’s underwriting standards were not stringent and the bank underwrote risky loans to entities with little to no cash flow or collateral; 3) Opus Bank’s credit controls were either disregarded or ineffective at identifying problem loans; and 4) Opus Bank did not have appropriate personnel and resources in place to monitor its loan portfolio or to establish proper loss reserves for the loan portfolio.
Opus Bank is a publicly chartered commercial bank, headquartered in Irvine, California with branches located in major metropolitan markets across California, Oregon, Washington and Arizona.
The case is Schwartz v. Opus Bank, No. 2:16-cv-07991-AB-JPR, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
About Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC:
Founded in 1969, Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC is recognized as one of the premier law firms in the country handling major, complex plaintiff-side litigation. With more than 90 attorneys, Cohen Milstein has offices in Washington, D.C., Chicago, Ill., New York, N.Y., Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., Philadelphia, Pa., and Raleigh, N.C.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
North Carolina Resident Alleges DuPont & Chemours Endangered Her Family’s Health, Safety and Property by
Dumping Toxic Chemicals into State Water Supply
Plaintiff Represented by Same Court-Appointed Lead Attorney in Lawsuits Over
Water Contamination in Flint, Michigan
WILMINGTON, N.C. – Multinational chemical corporation DuPont (NYSE: DD) and its wholly-owned subsidiary, the Chemours Company (NYSE: CC), exposed hundreds of thousands of North Carolinians to water laden with toxic chemicals that have been linked to a wide range of diseases, public health, and environmental effects, and misinformed the government and public about the health dangers created by their actions, according to a federal class-action lawsuit filed late Monday. The allegations were made on behalf of North Carolina residents, in five counties that get their drinking water from a river contaminated by the companies’ dumping. The plaintiff is a resident of the region; her whose drinking water was recently tested and found to have severely elevated levels of GenX and other poisonous substances. She says the companies’ decades-long toxic dumping has endangered the lives and health of residents and seriously affected their properties and property values.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the affected counties — New Hanover, Bladen, Brunswick, Cumberland, and Pender — have the highest concentration of liver disease in the United States. Further, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services says the rates of liver, pancreatic, testicular and kidney cancers are higher in the five counties than anywhere else in the state.
Since 1980, DuPont and Chemours have been dumping toxic waste, including byproducts of C8, GenX, and Nafion, into a river that supplies drinking water to five North Carolina counties with a combined population of over 750,000. As DuPont’s own testing has shown, these poisons can cause liver, pancreatic, testicular and kidney cancer, liver disease, fetal and birth defects.
“For over 35 years, DuPont and Chemours have put the lives and health of hundreds of thousands of men, women, and children at risk,” said Ted Leopold of Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll, co-counsel for the plaintiff in the suit. “Nothing will take away the health risks these North Carolinians have experienced, but it is important that these willful acts by DuPont and Chemours be brought to light so corporate misconduct of putting innocent lives at risk will stop. These defendants need to be held accountable and take full responsibility for their actions.”
Leopold is also co-lead counsel in a class action brought by Flint, MI residents against Gov. Rick Snyder, 17 local government officials, the City of Flint and a group of engineering companies over the now-infamous contamination of the Flint water supply.
DuPont, a multinational chemical manufacturer, develops high-performance polymers for use in products across various industries, including Teflon, which uses the chemical GenX in its manufacturing process, and Nafion, a product which is a compound of Teflon and other fluoridated chemicals. The Chemours Company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of DuPont, under which it had been depositing byproducts of GenX and Nafion into the Cape Fear River for years – even prior to its spinoff from DuPont – from its 2,000-acre Fayetteville Works plant, located upstream from the drinking water intakes of the five counties.
Despite conducting multiple internal tests that confirmed the toxicity of GenX, DuPont dismissed its own findings, continued the dumping and never disclosed the existence of the toxic waste or the related test results to residents or local utility companies. The complaint asserts that DuPont “failed to tell the EPA that it had been discharging GenX for decades without meeting regulatory waste standards.” As detailed in the lawsuit, the company even represented to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that GenX was sent to an off-site incinerator, a claim later proven to be false.
Chemours admitted publicly to discharging GenX in the North Carolina public water supply in June 2017, after a team of researchers from the North Carolina State University detected the chemical downriver from the Fayetteville Works plant. In September 2017, the North Carolina Division of Water Resources sought to suspend Chemours’ National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit, citing the company’s years-long misrepresentation and failure to disclose the dumping of GenX and Nafion byproducts.
In response to the now-public health crisis, North Carolina established a health-based standard for GenX of 140 ppt. According to the complaint, a June 2017 sampling of bottom sludge collected from a water heater at a residence in Brunswick County detected GenX at 857 ppt in the top layer of sludge and 623 ppt in the bottom layer of sludge. The lead plaintiff in the case has tap water with GenX levels that exceed the state standard.
“Can you imagine what it’s like worrying if the water you’re giving your family could kill them? That’s my daily reality and the reality of so many families across areas of North Carolina that get their water from the Cape Fear River,” said plaintiff Victoria Carey, a resident of Leland, North Carolina. September 2017 testing of water drawn from her home revealed elevated levels of GenX and Nafion that exceeded regulatory standards.
Ms. Carey continued: “I’m standing up because I can’t let DuPont and Chemours get away with putting our health at risk and contaminating our properties. DuPont and Chemours need to take responsibility for their years of bad actions and willful misconduct.”
“DuPont and Chemours and the responsible decision-makers within these companies put thousands of North Carolina citizens’ health at risk for years,” said Steve Morrissey of Susman Godfrey, L.L.P, co-counsel for the plaintiff in the suit. “The residents of North Carolina have suffered long enough and deserved better. We look forward to getting them the protection and justice they both need and deserve.”
The toxic dumping has not only polluted more than 100 miles of the river but also caused extensive damage to thousands of miles of municipal and residential piping. Chemicals like GenX and Nafion are nearly impossible to eradicate from the water supply once contamination has occurred. They are known to bond with pipes, microbes, plants, animals, and sediments and water authorities are not able to filter out the chemicals. To mitigate risks, extensive water filtration is needed at the municipal and residential levels, with removal and replacement of plumbing and appliances inside the home considered the safest and most effective option, potentially costing thousands of dollars for each home.
The lawsuit filed Monday seeks class-action status on behalf of the residents in New Hanover, Bladen, Brunswick, Cumberland, and Pender counties who have been or are currently exposed to the contaminated water, as well as injunctive relief and monetary damages for repairs of private property and medical monitoring to provide health care and other appropriate services for residents.
The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of North Carolina. The plaintiff is represented by Ted Leopold, Martha Geer and Doug Bunch of Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC; and Vineet Bhatia, Steve Morrissey and Jordan Connors of Susman Godfrey, L.L.P.
For media inquiries, please contact Denise Luu at 646.693.8188 or send an email.
About Cohen Milstein
Founded in 1969, Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC is a national leader in plaintiff class action lawsuits and litigation. As one of the premier firms in the country handling major complex cases, Cohen Milstein, with 90 attorneys, has offices in Washington, D.C., Chicago, New York City, Philadelphia, Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., and Raleigh, N.C.
About Susman Godfrey
For more than thirty years, Susman Godfrey LLP has focused its nationally recognized practice on just one thing: high-stakes commercial litigation. We are one of the nation’s leading litigation boutique law firms with offices in Houston, Seattle, Los Angeles and New York. We have a unique perspective, the will to win, and an uncommon structure, which taken together provide the way to win.
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