$8.2 Million Verdict in 4th 3M Earplug Trial

Описание: October 29, 2021: Round 4 of the 3M earplug lawsuits bellwether trials in the 3M earplugs litigation ended in the biggest and most decisive victory for the plaintiffs to date.

The Blum verdict, the next 3M earplug lawsuit, ended with a defense verdict on October 29, 2021. The next 3M lawsuit starts tomorrow on November 1, 2021.

Last Friday, October 1st, a federal court jury in Sarasota, Florida awarded army vet Brandon Atkins an $8.2 million verdict in his defective earplugs case against 3M.

https://www.millerandzois.com/combat-... (we have a NEW VERDICT update here as well)

This award was comprised entirely of “noneconomic” compensatory damages for Atkins’ physical and mental “pain and suffering.” The $8.2 million did not include any economic damages for medical expenses or lost income. It also did not include any punitive damages against 3M.

The jury didn’t take very much time to reach this verdict. They were sent back for deliberations shortly after 9:00 am. At 11:30, the jury sent a communication to the judge and then had lunch. The jury sent another request to the judge after their lunch break. Less than 20 minutes after this request, the jury formally reached their verdict. All that went into that 3M earplug trial and it was all over before 2:00 pm! It really is incredible.

Atkins was the 4th bellwether trial in the 3M earplug lawsuits. 3 of the 4 trials have now resulted in victories of the plaintiffs, but the verdict in the Atkins trial is easily the most significant win for earplug plaintiffs. It is also the most damaging loss for 3M.

There are several reasons why Atkins is a much bigger victory for 3M earplug plaintiffs than the previous two trials that resulted in plaintiff verdicts.

First and foremost, the Atkins case was a “defense pick.” In bellwether trials, the plaintiffs get to pick some cases for trial and the defendants get to pick some cases. The defendants pick cases that are more favorable and give them a better chance of winning.

Atkins was a case that was hand-picked by 3M’s defense team because they thought Atkins gave them a good chance of winning. The last “defense pick” by 3M was the 2nd bellwether trial, which resulted in a defense verdict. The fact that 3M suffered such a definitive defeat in a case that they picked for trial makes the loss much more damaging.

The other reason Atkins is such a resounding win for plaintiffs in the 3M earplugs litigation is the size of the verdict and the rejection of 3M’s affirmative defenses. The $8.2 million verdict for Atkins dwarfs the damage awards in the previous earplug bellwether trials.

Each of the 3 plaintiffs in the first trial got around $2.3 million. The plaintiff in the third trial got $1.7, but it was reduced to $1.1 based on 3M’s comparative negligence defense.

3M VERDICT SCORECARD

We now have FOUR 3M earplug verdicts for seven plaintiffs. Here is how they have gone:

Estes - $2.4 million
Hacker - $2.4 million
Keefer - $2.4 million
McCombs - defense verdict
Baker - $1.1 million (reduced from jury verdict of $1.7 million for contributory negligence)
Adkins - $8.2 million verdict
Blum - Trial starts on October 18, 2021:

When you bake in the McCombs loss, the individual average 3M compensation payout in these trials is $2.34 million.

MORE 3M EARPLUG LAWSUIT RESOURCES

Take a deeper dive into the facts of Adkins
https://www.millerandzois.com/blog/3m...

Our video after the first verdict:

   • $7 million Verdict in 3M Earplug Lawsuit F...  

Our blog post after the second verdict:

https://www.millerandzois.com/blog/3m...

Our video after the third verdict:

https://www.lawsuit-information-cente...