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FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
Teflon
users seek class-action
From The
Associated Press
DES MOINES, Iowa -
Owners of Teflon-coated pots and pans in 15 states are seeking
to have their cases combined in a $5 billion classaction lawsuit
claiming DuPont failed to disclose possible health risks from
using the nonstick cookware.
The lawsuits claim
DuPont continued to tell the government and consumers for years
that Teflon was safe even though its own studies showed the material
could become toxic when heated ''enough to fry an egg,'' according
to Des Moines plaintiffs lawyer Kim Baer.
DuPont attorney Adam
Hoeflich of Chicago said Teflon has a 40-year history of safe
use and no studies exist that show the material can become toxic.
Attorneys for the plaintiffs
have estimated a successful class-action case could cost DuPont
as much as $5 billion.
A judicial panel in
February set federal court in Des Moines as the place to hear
the initial stages of cases from a number of states, including
Florida.
Lawyer Alan Kluger
of Miami's Kluger Peretz Kaplan and Berlin, which filed the first
Teflon suit last year, is expected to lead the battle against
DuPont.
The lawsuits claim
that at 680 degrees Teflon-coated pans release six toxic gases
including cancer-causing agents and PFOA, which has been determined
by the Science Advisory Board for the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency to likely be a cancer-causing agent in humans.
But that government
agency says it doesn't believe customers should stop using the
Teflon products.
''EPA wants to emphasize
that it does not have any indication that the public is being
exposed to PFOA through the use of Teflon-coated or other trademarked
nonstick cookware,'' the EPA website says.
The government continues
to seek information about PFOA through enforceable agreements
with and voluntary efforts by DuPont, it says.
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For a copy of the lawsuit and to arrange a comprehensive briefing on the case from the legal team, please contact Jason Kemp, 202.973.1353, jkemp@levick.com. |
