This case involves a town in Arkansas where the presence of toxic chemical compounds known as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) had been discovered in several of its buildings. PCBs are man-made organic chemical compounds that were used in hundreds of industrial and commercial applications, such as electrical equipment, fluorescent lighting ballasts, paints, sealants, and caulks. For many years, there was only one manufacturer in the United States that intentionally produced PCBs for commercial use . Products containing PCBs were widely used in the construction and renovation of buildings throughout the US. Internal documents show that it was known that PCBs were toxic as early as the 1930s, and consistently through the 1970s. Some corporations expressed a desire to continue profiting from PCBs despite the environmental and human health havoc. Plaintiffs allege that the defendant corporation, which used PCB coatings for its products, had a duty to provide adequate warnings to Plaintiffs, the public, and public officials of the risk posed by PCBs and PCB-contaminating products. It is alleged that the Defendant knew of the risks associated with PCBs and failed to provide a warning that would lead an ordinary reasonable user or handler of a product to contemplate the dangers associated with PCB-containing products or an instruction that would have allowed plaintiffs to avoid any damage. Despite the Defendant’s knowledge of the presence of PCB-containing products in commercial buildings and schools nationwide, they never issued any warnings, instructions, recalls, or advice regarding PCB-containing products to schools communities, parents, or governmental agencies.
