Final Approval of $17.5 Million Class Action Settlement

On June 20, 2022, Judge Jeffrey B. Beacham of the Superior Court of New Jersey, Law Division, granted final approval of a $ 17.5 million settlement of a class action brought by Davis Environmental Law on behalf of homeowners damaged by groundwater contamination emanating from the former headquarters of Hoffmann-La Roche Inc. (“Roche”) in Nutley and Clifton, NJ.  The settlement compensated the owners of 427 residential properties around the former Roche site for the damage to property values caused by the contamination.

The groundwater problem came to light when Roche decided to stop operations and sell the site, which triggered a legal obligation to account for its environmental condition.  The resulting investigations revealed the presence of contaminants in the groundwater both at the site and running under the neighboring properties.  Affected homeowners all received information about the contamination from Roche, under NJDEP’s direction.

Roche not only sent written notices that NJDEP approved to the affected properties, it held several public meetings.  At one of these meetings, members of the public asked whether Roche intended to compensate the homeowners and Roche representative said no.   At that point, one of the homeowners came to Davis Environmental Law.  We researched the situation, sought out co-counsel and the necessary experts, and filed the class action in December, 2014.

It was a complicated site and a complicated lawsuit, including appeals all the way to the New Jersey Supreme Court.  In the end, we clarified standards for class action certification in New Jersey and owners of over 95% of class properties filed claims entitling them to share in the settlement.  Judge Beacham recognized the hard work behind this result in his decision approving the settlement as follows:

Overall, the work performed by class counsel was, indeed, extraordinary in every sense, including but not limited to the amount of time and delicate analysis dedicated to the breadth of the issues that have to be addressed to represent the interest of the class…. This litigation was conducted in an orderly and efficient fashion, to ensure an excellent result for the class.  I know that because I’ve been managing this case for the last four years.

The case did not claim personal injury damages because, among other things, residents in the affected homes drink water that comes from public reservoirs, not groundwater, so pursuant to the settlement, class members retain such claims, should they ever arise.