DuPont hit with $2 million verdict over Teflon-making chemical

By Erica Teichert

(Reuters) – A U.S. jury in Ohio on Wednesday ordered DuPont to pay $2 million to a man who said he developed testicular cancer from exposure to a toxic chemical leaked from one of the company’s plants, according to the plaintiff’s lawyer Robert Bilott.

The federal jury also found DuPont acted with actual malice, raising the possibility of punitive damages, Bilott said. It is the third time jurors in Ohio federal court have found DuPont liable for injuries linked to perfluorooctanoic acid, known as PFOA or C-8, which is used to make Teflon.

There are more than 3,400 lawsuits pending over the chemical leak, which allegedly contaminated local water supplies. The plaintiff, Kenneth Vigneron, Sr., claimed he developed testicular cancer from the chemical exposure.

DuPont declined to comment on the verdict, citing the pending punitive damages phase of the trial.

(Reporting by Erica Teichert; Editing by Bernard Orr)