After decades of widespread use in countless consumer and industrial products, the EPA and state Attorneys General have launched a national effort to restrict the use of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), limit their release into the environment and undertake remediation and cleanup efforts of contaminated sites. While these efforts originally targeted the more well-known perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) chemicals, we are seeing an increased focus on many other PFAS, such as GenX, PFHxS, PFHxA, PFNA, and PFBA, as well as efforts broadly aimed at all PFAS as a group. The EPA’s PFAS Strategic Roadmap calls for new regulations under existing federal environmental laws, while states are enacting their own PFAS regulations and proposals. Companies across a wide range of industries and sectors, including construction, automotive, home furnishings, textiles, paint, food packaging, plastics, electronics, fashion and apparel, beauty and cosmetics, medical devices, personal care, fire safety and others, now must understand and navigate a complex patchwork of emerging federal and state regulations.

To assist clients with the multifaceted legal challenges that PFOA, PFOS and all types of PFAS present, Duane Morris has created a dedicated PFAS team of attorneys with significant environmental, regulatory, toxic tort and class action experience. Our attorneys have experience representing clients in matters related to PFAS contamination of drinking water, toxic tort claims, cleanup claims, property transactions, agency inquiries, regulatory violations and more. Our PFAS team understands the complex science, shifting regulatory landscape, environmental and compliance issues and multiple litigation threats of PFAS.

Our services include:

  • Environmental and regulatory compliance
  • Products liability litigation
  • Class action and toxic tort litigation
  • Government agency investigations and enforcement actions
  • Litigation involving insurance claims
  • Real estate transactions and property damages claims
  • Litigation involving cleanup and remediation

With the sheer number of products that knowingly or unknowingly contain PFAS, such as PFOA, PFOS and others, and the frequency with which these substances are found in the environment, the scale and scope of PFAS-related legal issues are immense, perhaps rivaling or even exceeding the legal issues surrounding asbestos. As public and political scrutiny of PFAS continue to unfold and the science surrounding PFAS exposure advances, the Duane Morris PFAS Group continues to monitor and analyze developments to protect our clients’ interests.

For Additional Information

For more information, please contact Lindsay Ann Brown, Sharon L. Caffrey, Alyson Walker Lotman, Brad A. Molotsky or any of the group members referenced in the Attorney Listing.