3M Wins Second Bellwether Trial In Earplug Lawsuits

3M Wins Second Bellwether Trial In Earplug Lawsuits

Introduction

A Florida jury has cleared 3M of liability in the second bellwether trial which is a part of 236,000-plaintiff class action claims alleging the earplugs of defective design leading to hearing loss.

As per the court documents, an Afghanistan veteran sued 3M claiming that the company's earplugs did not protect him during an IED explosion in 2009 resulting in a tinnitus problem for him, but the federal jury did not consider the manufacturer responsible for the plaintiff's hearing loss.

The earplugs have a reversible design that provides selective noise cancellation when used with the other side and complete blocking of noise when used on the reversed side as claimed by the manufacturer.

Plaintiff's attorneys exhibited disappointment about the verdict as they believe that 3M was aware of the defective design of the earplugs that resulted in tinnitus and hearing loss among the service members.

3M's spokeswoman informed that the company is happy about the verdict and will continue to defend itself in future trials. She even stated that the earplugs were always safe for use.

Earlier, three veterans were awarded a total of $7.1 million in the first bellwether trial against 3M. The veterans accused that the earplug's design is defective and did not fit the ear canal.

The third bellwether trial in the 3M earplugs' lawsuits will begin on June 7. The plaintiff of the third bellwether trial claims that he is suffering from tinnitus due to the defective design of earplugs. In 2005 and 2006, the plaintiff was training at urban warfare at Fort Lewis operating a 160-decibel M240 machine gun when he started facing hearing loss issues.