EOC Week 3: Erin Brockovich

Erin Brockovich is a legal clerk and environmental advocate who was essential in the groundwater contamination case of Hinkley, CA versus the Pacific Gas & Electric company. As an employee of Edward L. Masry’s legal firm, she investigated the cause of illnesses from residents in the town, where the PG & E factory resided for decades. Her findings included that the groundwater in Hinkley, CA had been contaminated with hexavalent chromium, now a noted carcinogen, used by PG & E to prevent rust in the machinery.

“At issue was a carcinogenic chemical called hexavalent chromium, known more simply as “chrome 6.” The company had detected the chemical in a monitoring well north of its compressor station in Hinkley, California. Groundwater in the area flowed north - toward the homes, and businesses, of PG&E’s neighbors (who used groundwater for drinking purposes). And those neighbors, at least some of them, were getting sick.”

The case was settled in 1996 for a record $333 million, a record amount for the largest settlement paid in a direct-action lawsuit in US legal history. Ten years later, PG & E agreed to pay an additional $295 million to settle with 1,100 more people for hexavalent chromium related claims However, many of the plaintiffs believed that their settlement money were not enough.

“Now, many of the townspeople who sued complain their awards were smaller than they deserved. Some have even hired lawyers to get back excessive legal fees charged to children. They say the attorneys kept their awards for six months after the settlement money was delivered, and that they didn’t receive interest on it. They complain that there was little or no apparent logic behind the varying amounts of money individual plaintiffs received; some claim that the arbitrators never even looked at their medical records.”

In my opinion, I feel that the families of those affected by the contamination received enough in settlement. Though I don’t know the exact amount each plaintiff received, it’s understandable for those involved to feel they deserve more money, especially with such a large amount to be reimbursed into so many plaintiffs. It’s difficult to gauge how much financial help the settlement assisted the residents of Hinkley, CA but I’m sure such an amount won against a large company’s wrongdoings is nothing but positive.