The statement said settlement of claims is contingent upon all plaintiffs agreeing to their individual settlement allocation and dismissing their claims with prejudice. According to the statement, the completion of the agreements is expected to take 90 to 120 days, which emphasizes that the settlements are not an admission of any liability or “Emissions from Willowbrook facilities present any safety hazard to surrounding communities.”
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Medical sterilization company Sterigenics has faced two trials over claims that its emissions cause cancer for residents near its plant in the suburb of Willowbrook.
In September 2022, a jury found Sterigenics liable for causing cancer of Willowbrook resident Sue Kamuda and ordered the company to pay her $363 million.
In November 2022, a Cook County jury ruled in Sterigenics’ favor, concluding that the company was not responsible for the cancer of plaintiff Teresa Fornek, who lived near the company’s plant in the suburbs. Willowbrook.
Sterigenics uses a chemical called ethylene oxide to disinfect medical devices. The Willowbrook plant closed in September 2019.
More cases against Sterigenics come after a study conducted by the US Environmental Protection Agency in 2018 found that people in the surrounding area face a high cancer risk associated with Sterigenics.
Sotera said the settlements will “provide a route to comprehensive resolution of pending claims against Sterigenics and Sotera Health LLC in Illinois,” allowing the company to focus on its business. itself and avoid the costs of issuing a large bond associated with appealing Kamuda’s ruling, as well as the time and cost of arguing “hundreds of additional lawsuits through a multi-year process in the system.” Illinois court system.”
This story first appeared in Crain’s Chicago Business.
