3M Co., facing more than 200,000 lawsuits accusing it of harming soldiers with defective combat earplugs, opened a new round of mediation yesterday overseen by the same federal judge the industrial conglomerate has been feuding with since July, Bloomberg News reported. The company blames U.S. District Court Judge M. Casey Rodgers for letting a multibillion-dollar legal problem become so intractable that one of 3M’s units filed bankruptcy in a failed effort to get the suits away from her. Rodgers accuses 3M of trying to undermine the biggest multi-district litigation (MDL) in U.S. history and pledged to investigate the company’s motives. The unusual legal feud will hang over two days of negotiations led by a mediator in Florida who was appointed by Rodgers just seven weeks after she questioned whether 3M made a good faith effort in a previous round of failed mediation. Refusing to negotiate in good faith during a court proceeding can lead to sanctions. Judge Rodgers, based in Pensacola, Fla., and 3M both declined to comment on the conflict. The company reiterated its view that the lawsuits should be resolved by a different federal judge in Indianapolis, where a key 3M unit is based. Rodgers is preparing hundreds of thousands of suits for trials across the U.S. in which 3M would face claims it sold faulty earplugs to soldiers, causing hearing damage. Losses in 10 test trials already have resulted in $300 million in jury awards and tens of millions more in legal fees.
