IN RE: 3M COMBAT ARMS EARPLUG PRODUCTS LIABILITY LITIGATION

  1. March 10, 2023

    Fla. Judge Calls 3M Hearing-Loss Evaluation 'Problematic'

    The Florida federal judge overseeing the multidistrict litigation over hearing loss related to allegedly faulty combat earplugs made by 3M said Friday that the company's approach to evaluating hearing loss is "problematic."

  2. March 01, 2023

    3M Says Most Vets In Earplugs MDL Have Normal Hearing

    3M Co., which has put its Aearo Technologies LLC unit into bankruptcy to try to spin off liability for more than 200,000 claims it faces in multidistrict litigation over hearing loss related to allegedly faulty combat earplugs, said Wednesday that U.S. Department of Defense records show that the vast majority of claimants have normal hearing.

  3. January 26, 2023

    3M Earplug Unit's Bankruptcy Contrived, 7th Circ. Told

    A group of multidistrict litigation plaintiffs has urged the Seventh Circuit not to pause the sprawling litigation over injuries allegedly caused by faulty 3M Co. earplugs while a subsidiary's bankruptcy case proceeds, saying the companies tried to misuse bankruptcy law.

  4. January 19, 2023

    3M Earplug MDL Judge Ends Mediation After Impasse

    A Florida federal judge has halted mediation in the contentious multidistrict litigation over injuries allegedly caused by faulty 3M Co. earplugs provided to military service members, saying the company and plaintiffs were too far apart to make further settlement talks worthwhile.

  5. December 22, 2022

    3M Sanctioned For Using Ch. 11, Subsidiary To Duck Liability

    3M Co. can't avoid any part of its alleged liability in massive multidistrict litigation over injuries purportedly caused by its Combat Arms Earplugs, a Florida federal judge ruled Thursday, saying the company cannot shift the blame to its codefendant.

  6. November 02, 2022

    3M Asked To Justify New Defenses In Earplug MDL

    A Florida federal judge has invited 3M to justify its latest defense in massive multidistrict litigation over injuries allegedly caused by Combat Arms Earplugs, less than a week after criticizing the company's arguments that its codefendant and subsidiary Aearo Technologies LLC is solely responsible for those injuries.

  7. October 28, 2022

    Judge Calls Attys' MDL Criticism 'Deceptive Public Posturing'

    A Florida federal judge defended her oversight of the massive 3M Combat Arms Earplugs multidistrict litigation against attorneys' criticism that the process is "broken," calling those comments "overzealous and deceptive public posturing" in an order imposing a stay on the wave and transition process.

  8. October 26, 2022

    3M Can't Get New Trial After $50M Earplug Injury Verdict

    3M was denied a new trial after a jury awarded a veteran Green Beret $50 million in his suit alleging the company's Combat Arms earplugs gave him tinnitus and hearing loss, with a Florida federal judge ruling Tuesday the verdict is "substantially supported" by the trial evidence.

  9. October 24, 2022

    3M Experts Can't Blame Drugs For Hearing Loss, Judge Says

    The Florida federal judge presiding over multidistrict litigation against 3M over allegedly faulty earplugs on Monday excluded certain defense testimony from the company's experts ahead of trial, citing scientifically unsupported or irrelevant medical opinions regarding prescription or illegal drugs causing hearing loss.

  10. October 19, 2022

    3M Says Plaintiffs Can't Bar Defense In Earplug MDL

    A Florida federal judge has been asked by 3M Co. to reject a request that she block the company from arguing a now-bankrupt subsidiary is liable for damages caused by allegedly defective earplugs, saying the request ignores significant differences in state law.