PFAS Lawsuits

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are chemicals used in products like cookware and firefighting foam to resist heat, grease and water. Sometimes called “forever chemicals,” the use of PFAS can contaminate the air, soil and water.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, almost all Americans have PFAS in their blood.

Attorneys have filed thousands of PFAS lawsuits due to the chemicals’ widespread impact and ties to health issues like cancer. Cities, public drinking water systems and individuals who have been exposed to these chemicals have filed claims against PFAS manufacturers like 3M and Chemours.

You must meet specific criteria to file a PFAS lawsuit. This checklist will help you determine whether you are eligible to file.

PFAS Lawsuit Checklist

You can prove PFAS exposure through occupational and medical records, as well as contaminated water records. You should collect and combine several sources of evidence. No single source may be definitive, and documentation of exposure can involve collecting work or military records, testing water samples and providing personal testimony.

• Water testing records showing contamination in your water supply from: 
  • Your local health departments
  • Lab reports of your private well test for PFAS contamination
  • Your local public water utility
• Occupational or military records: 
  • Training log from your employer or your military service
  • Military or work records showing your base or airport assignments
  • Evidence or records that you used firefighter turnout gear containing PFAS
• Medical: 
  • Medical diagnosis of kidney, testicular, liver or thyroid cancer
  • Medical diagnosis of ulcerative colitis
  • PFAS blood tests or other biomonitoring results showing exposure
• Financial records: 
  • Bills resulting from your injuries, including all medical bills
  • Documented wage loss

PFAS refers to a group of manufactured chemicals linked to serious health issues like cancer. Manufacturers have used these chemicals in consumer and industry products for decades.

Cancer classifications and safety standards often consider specific types of PFAS chemicals individually. For instance, in 2024, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) labeled two common PFAS compounds, PFOA and PFOS, as likely to cause cancer in humans. They then set very low limits for the amount of these chemicals that can be in drinking water. However, many other PFAS compounds have less strict guidelines.

Nonstick cookware is a common product that may include PFAS. Another is aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF), a firefighting foam used at airports and military bases to extinguish liquid-based flames like gasoline fires.

“One reason we do see PFAS water contamination commonly around sites that use AFFF is that AFFF has a lot of PFAS in it,” Scott Bartell, a health researcher at UC Irvine who has studied PFAS for nearly 20 years, told Drugwatch. “It was the key ingredient to make it effective for the kind of uses that type of firefighting foam has.”

PFAS are also found in firefighter gear.

Over the years, PFAS chemicals have contaminated the air, soil and groundwater, impacting animals and humans. Since PFAS do not break down easily, they linger in the environment. This has helped these chemicals spread across the globe.

“Because they’ve been produced for so long, largely without any regulation, we can now find them everywhere in the world,” Bartell said. “You can go sample ocean creatures. You find them up in the Arctic.”

There is no easy way to detect PFAS since these chemicals have no discernible taste or smell. Laboratory testing is necessary to detect PFAS.

What Are the Symptoms of PFAS Exposure?

Concerns about the potential health impacts of widespread PFAS contamination have increased in recent years. Research has shown that PFAS exposure may be tied to various health issues, including an increased risk of cancer.

The National Cancer Institute reports that Air Force members who served as firefighters or worked at bases with increased levels of PFAS in the water had higher levels of PFAS in their blood, resulting in a high risk of testicular cancer.

Researchers also noted higher rates of kidney cancer diagnoses and deaths among people who lived in communities with contaminated drinking water near PFAS-producing chemical plants. Research even links forever chemicals to liver damage.

In 2023, the International Agency for Research on Cancer classified PFAS as “carcinogenic to humans” and PFOS as “possibly carcinogenic to humans.” The working group of 30 experts from 11 countries did not evaluate other types of PFAS at the time.

There are thousands of PFAS lawsuits that fall into several different categories. These include:

• AFFF lawsuits
• Firefighter turnout gear lawsuits
• Water contamination lawsuits

People are currently filing water contamination lawsuits after drinking chemical-contaminated water and developing serious health issues.

Different types of PFAS have links to various health conditions. Health risks from PFAS depend on exposure levels and frequency, along with personal factors like sensitivity and existing health issues. Access to clean water and health care also play a role in the overall risk.

PFAS can seep into water from industrial sites and landfills. However, another major source of contamination is AFFF.

When this foam is used to put out a fire, for training or for system testing, it can seep into the surrounding area and contaminate water. Since these chemicals don’t break down easily, they can accumulate over time.

“It is very common to have PFAS water contamination around military bases, airports, places they practice with AFFF,” Bartell said.

Attorneys have filed AFFF lawsuits over these concerns.

Firefighters are at an increased risk of exposure to PFAS through AFFF and tend to have higher cancer rates than the general population. A meta-analysis of several studies shows that testicular cancer rates for firefighters are 100% higher than the average person.

Exposure to firefighting foam is not the only PFAS-related concern for firefighters. People have also filed turnout gear lawsuits Turnout gear lawsuits over claims that firefighter gear contains dangerous chemicals.

According to the International Association of Firefighters, studies have shown that all three layers of firefighter gear contain potentially harmful PFAS.

Firefighters, paramedics and first responders who developed cancer after repeated exposure to PFAS may be eligible to file lawsuits.

You can file a PFAS lawsuit if you developed certain health conditions after exposure to these chemicals.

You may have suffered exposure via contaminated drinking water. If you were a firefighter or worked at an airport or military base, you may have been exposed through firefighting foam or gear.

Your case might be stronger if you also lived or worked in an area that is known for PFAS contamination. Lawyers have filed many lawsuits over claims that this contamination is connected to kidney cancer, testicular cancer and ulcerative colitis.

One of our trusted legal partners can help you learn more about your options if you aren’t sure you qualify for a PFAS lawsuit. We can match you with a law firm that is a good fit for your case.

People are suing PFAS manufacturers over contamination and potential health issues connected to these chemicals.

Manufacturer 3M has been a defendant in many lawsuits over its ties to PFAS. The company produced firefighting foams that contained forever chemicals.

According to reports, 3M was aware of the environmental risks associated with these products for years but continued to market them as biodegradable.

The company has paid out billions in settlements over these concerns, including $10.3 billion in 2023, to various cities and towns that claimed their drinking water supplies were contaminated.

State and municipal lawsuits proceed differently and address different types of damages than individual personal injury lawsuits. The settlements with state and local governments and utility providers do not address individual injuries. If you have received injuries due to PFAS exposure, you will not receive money from these settlements. You will have to file your own PFAS personal injury lawsuit.

Other companies that have been defendants in PFAS lawsuits include multinational chemical corporation DuPont, as well as its spin-off companies, Chemours and Corteva. In 2023, DuPont, Chemours and Corteva agreed to a settlement worth $1.185 billion to resolve claims with public water systems.

Tyco Fire Products, a company that manufactures firefighting foam, has also faced lawsuits. It agreed to a $750 million settlement with public water systems in 2024 over PFAS contamination.

Legal industry estimates suggest that the individual payout for a PFAS settlement could range from $75,000 to $500,000. However, these figures are speculative. Each payout depends on the circumstances of the individual case.

Several factors can impact your payout in a potential PFAS lawsuit verdict or settlement.

While defendants have agreed to multi-billion-dollar settlements with cities and public water systems, there has not yet been a global settlement for the more than 10,000 PFAS and AFFF cases grouped together in federal court.

PFAS Trial Process

The progress of the AFFF multidistrict litigation (MDL) could play a significant role in whether a settlement happens and when. An MDL groups many similar lawsuits.

The U.S. Judicial Panel for Multidistrict Litigation has consolidated thousands of PFAS lawsuits into an MDL. This allows the cases to move through the legal process together, streamlining the litigation process.

As of November 2025, the MDL had 15,249 pending cases in a South Carolina federal court, presided over by U.S. District Judge Richard M. Gergel.

In August 2025, the court put a hold on the AFFF bellwether trial scheduled for October. In a case management order, the court stated that this was because many of the lawsuits the MDL’s plaintiffs wanted to include remained unfiled. Judge Gergel said this break will allow the court to ensure that all cases are properly submitted and reviewed before proceeding to trial.

Part of the MDL process includes holding bellwether trials, in which the court selects a few cases to go to trial from the thousands of pending lawsuits. Bellwether trials let plaintiffs and defendants see how their arguments hold up before a jury.

If people who filed lawsuits are successful in those trials, PFAS manufacturers could be motivated to agree to a global settlement for thousands of cases instead of going to trial.

The first personal injury bellwether trial for PFAS lawsuits was scheduled for October 2025, but has been postponed to allow time for any unfiled cases to be added to the MDL.

PFAS contamination has been reported across all 50 states. In 2023, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated that at least 45% of the nation’s tap water contains forever chemicals.

The surrounding areas of military bases and airports could be particularly susceptible to this contamination.

In July 2024, the EPA and the U.S. Army announced a joint sampling project to test for PFAS in private drinking wells near Army installations. This included Army locations in the following states:

“When we go and test people, we can find PFAS in everybody’s body. There’s nobody that is PFAS-free,” Bartell said. “That’s born out in national surveys as well and in other countries. It’s not unique to the U.S. We see this around the world that everybody pretty much has PFAS chemicals in their body now.”

If you want to learn more about PFAS exposure where you live, the Environmental Working Group maintains a nationwide PFAS map.

PFAS litigation is taking place across the country. Here’s a timeline of some of the key developments in the lawsuits.

Check back for updates as these lawsuits progress.