3M Penalized With $77.5M In Latest Earplugs Lawsuit

Introduction

A federal jury in Pensacola, Florida, ordered 3M to pay a $77.5 million settlement to an Army veteran who claimed that the company's defective earplugs caused hearing damage to him.

As per the complaint filed by the veteran, he served in the Army from 2005 to 2009 and further in the Army Reserves until 2011. During the tenure of his service, he used 3M's Combat Arms Earplugs Version 2 while using various weapons, which eventually resulted in hearing loss and tinnitus for him.

The lawyers representing the plaintiffs provided a joint statement claiming that the 3M's defenses are unconvincing and baseless in the courts, to investors, or to the public.

3M, on the other hand, portrayed disappointment over the verdict and has indicated to appeal against it. The attorney representing the company said that they were prevented from presenting crucial evidence that could have changed the outcome of the trial. The company will address this issue in the appeal.

It is the last trial from the set of 16 trials that were held to test the strength of plaintiffs' claims and facilitate settlement talks. 3M won six of the trials, whereas the plaintiffs won 10 trials which accounted for $300 million in penalties to the company.

It is the largest verdict offered to an individual in the growing litigation that includes more than 290,000 claims in the Pensacola court against 3M over the earplugs.

The military service members used the earplugs developed by 3M between 2003 and 2015. 3M was bought by Aearo Technologies in 2008. All the plaintiffs involved in the 3M lawsuits allege that the company misinterpreted the test results of the earplugs, hid design flaws and failed to provide proper instructions to use them.

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