ALBANY — A federal judge has granted preliminary approval to a proposed settlement in a class-action lawsuit filed against DuPont Co. on behalf of Hoosick Falls residents who were allegedly harmed by contamination of their community’s water supplies.
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The approval by U.S. District Judge Mae A. D’Agostino, who said the agreement appears to be “procedurally fair, reasonable, and adequate,” will add $27 million to the more than $65 million that has been recovered from the class-action litigation.
One of the next steps in the process requires current and former Hoosick Falls residents to file claims or to opt out of the settlement. Stephen G. Schwarz, a Rochester attorney who is a co-lead counsel in the case, said that notices will be distributed to residents via regular mail and email in early December, and the claim forms will be available soon on the website: https://www.hoosickfallspfoasettlement.com/.
For those who participated in the 2021 settlement, they will be able to file short-form claims. For those who are filing for the first time, they will be required to file longer claim forms. There is a public meeting scheduled at the Hoosick Falls Central Schools auditorium on Jan. 21, where attorneys in the case will explain the settlement and answer questions. On Jan. 22, a workshop is scheduled at the Hoosick Falls Armory; the attorneys will be there to help anyone needing assistance in completing claim forms.
The federal lawsuit was filed nearly a decade ago on behalf of residents in and around the village of Hoosick Falls, where the drinking water had been contaminated for decades by factories that used manufacturing chemicals produced by the company.
The settlement funds will be distributed among current and former residents of the community who had been exposed to perfluorinated chemicals through contaminated drinking water. It also includes an additional $6 million for ongoing medical monitoring of residents who enrolled in that program. When that 10-year program is over, any money left over will be distributed to the participants who took part in the monitoring.
The agreement with DuPont will bring the total distributions to residents for loss of property value due to the contamination to approximately $35,000,000. James Bilsborrow of Weitz & Luxenberg in New York City, a co-lead counsel for the plaintiffs, previously said that amount is very close to the maximum loss calculated by Dr. Jeffrey Zabel, a real estate economist from Tuft’s University.
The tentative agreement was finalized in July as a multi-week trial in the case had been scheduled to begin in U.S. District Court in Albany, pitting a small community against one of the world’s largest corporations.
Read the full article: https://www.timesunion.com/capitol/article/judge-approves-hoosick-falls-class-action-case-21190953.php