Sunridge Law Group partners with nationally recognized litigators to help bring justice to those that are injured by the bad acts of others. See a few of our partners below.
MICHAEL BERNARD, ATTORNEY
OUR CASES
We are currently handling the following cases:
Toxic PFAS Chemicals
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of human-made chemicals that have been used in various industrial and consumer products since the 1940s. Known for their durability and resistance to heat, water, and oil, PFAS have become widespread in applications such as carpet and flooring, non-stick cookware, water-repellent clothing, firefighting foams, and food packaging. However, their persistence in the environment and potential health risks have raised significant concerns, leading to an increasing body of research and regulatory scrutiny.
3M had it sent by the railcar to companies in Northwest Georgia. 3M’s toxic, hazardous PFAS chemicals foreseeably ended up in our water, on our land, and in the fish and animals. Northwest Georgia carpet manufacturers purchased PFAS from 3M and other large chemical manufacturers by the railcar, to use in their manufacturing process. From the beginning, carpet manufacturers discharged millions of gallons of PFAS into the waste stream via factory sewer drains.
This lawsuit addresses the serious harm caused by certain cow's milk-based baby formulas, such as Enfamil and Similac, which led to necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) in premature infants. Families whose premature babies developed NEC after being fed these formulas are represented in this case.
We are holding Abbott Laboratories (maker of Similac) and Mead Johnson (maker of Enfamil) accountable because they failed to properly warn about the risks of NEC. Despite being aware of the potential dangers, these companies marketed their formulas as safe for premature infants. Our team is committed to seeking justice and compensation for the affected families by holding these manufacturers responsible.
On August 8, 2023, after days of National Weather Service dangerously high winds warnings, wildfires of historic proportions engulfed parts of the Hawaiian Island of Maui. The Lahaina fire alone destroyed almost 3,000 homes and businesses and killed 101 people, making it the deadliest wildfire in the United States in over a century. Evidence strongly suggests that HECO’s power lines ignited the Lahaina conflagration, while other entities actions or inactions led to its rapid and uncontrollable spread.
Sunridge Law Group, in association with one of the nation’s top mass tort litigators and a well-known Lahaina-born attorney, are working hard to hold HECO and the other responsible parties accountable for the death and destruction. The litigation is being prosecuted on Maui in the State Court’s 2nd circuit. The first trials are expected to begin in late 2024.
On February 3, 2023, an almost two-mile long train operated by the Norfolk Southern railroad, the country’s 4th largest railroad by revenue1, derailed in the small Ohio town of East Palestine. In the end, about 50 railcars lept the tracks including 11 that carried hazardous materials including vinyl chloride, butyl acrylate, ethylhexyl acrylate, isobutylene, and ethylene glycol monobutyl ether. Three days later, crews, including those from Norfolk Southern, decided first to vent some of the toxic materials into the air and then later siphon the vinyl chloride into a trough and ignite the material, ultimately resulting in a huge mushroom cloud of toxic soup that could be seen for miles. Surveillance camera footage2 taken 20 miles outside of East Palestine clearly shows flames emanating from under the rail cars, suggesting issues with the wheels or other equipment.
Within two weeks of this tragedy, Sunridge Law Group, joining with a local Ohio-based law firm, a nationally recognized mass tort trial lawyer, environmental advocate Erin Brockovich and various subject-matter experts, launched East Palestine Justice. The lawyers with East Palestine Justice filed one of the first lawsuits in US District Court in Youngstown, OH, alleging Norfolk Southern’s culpability for the damages caused by the train derailment.
On March 13, 2024, US District Court Judge Yoland Pearson rejected Norfolk Southern’s motion to dismiss the various lawsuits filed against them.The litigation is expected to continue through 2024 and beyond.
For decades, manufacturers in Maine have used a family of chemicals called Per- and Polyfluorinated Substances, known as PFAS, to make their products resist heat, oil, stains, grease and water. PFAS molecules have a chain of linked carbon and fluorine atoms. This carbon-fluorine bond is one of the strongest known and does not degrade easily in the natural environment. These chemicals are also called “forever chemicals”.
During the consumer product manufacturing process in Maine, and elsewhere, significant amounts of PFAS chemicals are released into the environment, mostly in the form of wastewater. This PFAS-polluted wastewater finds its way into private wells and onto land after treated effluent gets spread onto farms and other property. Once consumed by humans, PFAS bioaccumulates in the bloodstream and can cause significant health problems.
After investigating the cause of the massive amount of PFAS contamination in Maine, Sunridge Law Group launched PFAS Maine, bringing together a long-time Maine law firm with a nationally-recognized Mass Tort litigator to seek justice for Mainers suffering through this tragedy. The group also includes environmental advocate Erin Brockovich and water experts.
The lawyers working with PFAS Maine have filed cases against 3M, the maker of PFAS chemicals, and a number of manufacturers who use PFAS in their products, seeking to recover for the harm caused by PFAS contamination to families and farmers. The litigation is active and is expected to continue through 2024.
For decades, consumer product giant Johnson & Johnson® knew its talc-based powder contained trace-amounts of asbestos, a known carcinogen, that could cause cancer in people who used it. Despite this knowledge, J&J marketed this talc-based baby powder as safe and effective. In 2020, only after it faced tens of thousands of lawsuits did J&J finally decide to remove the talc-based baby powder from the US market and replace talc with cornstarch-based baby powders.
Sunridge Law Group, working together with a leading Mass Tort litigator, launched Talc Powder Justice to advocate for justice for the thousands of individuals harmed by J&J for its role in manufacturing products that contain cancer-causing ingredients.
Efforts to resolve the J&J litigation have been complicated by the company’s complicated and cynical bankruptcy filings and the legal and financial maneuvers accompanying such filings. The legal team with Talc Power Justice will continue its hard work to achieve a fair and just resolution for its clients.
