Editor's note: This article has been revised from a previous version to include a statement from Sterigenics concerning the judge's ruling, and to indicate Sterigenics intends to appeal.
A Cook County judge has reinforced a jury’s decision to award $363 million to a woman who claimed her cancer is the fault of Sterigenics, which sterilizes medical devices.
Sterigenics has vowed to appeal, saying they continue to believe the verdict did not align with the facts and evidence presented to the jury. The company's lawyers have previously argued the verdict was awarded based on "passion" and "class prejudices," and not the law and the facts of the case.
Patrick Salvi II
| Salvi Schostok & Pritchard
On Sept. 19, a Cook County jury decided Sterigenics and its corporate parent Sotera Health, should pay $363 million to Susan Kamuda, whose 2018 lawsuit alleged the company’s plant in suburban Willowbrook emitted ethylene oxide that caused her to contract breast cancer.
Sterigenics, headquartered in suburban Oak Brook, and Sotera Health, of Broadview Heights, Ohio, filed post-trial motions in October seeking a different verdict, a new trial or to at least have the financial award reviewed.
In an opinion filed Dec. 19, Cook County Judge Marguerite Quinn denied those motions.
Sterigenics argued Quinn shouldn’t have let an insubstantial case reach a jury and accused Quinn of “critical” errors during the trial. Both companies asserted Quinn should’ve thrown out the case during trial when it became clear evidence didn’t support Kamuda’s allegation that low levels of EtO was “more likely than not a cause of her cancer,” according to Sterigenics.
The defendants further said Quinn shouldn’t have allowed Kamuda’s “causation experts” to testify and argued Kamuda admitted Sterigenics complied with regulatory requirements and standards. Sterigenics claimed it even went beyond requirements.
The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency closed the Willowbrook plant in 2019. That action was driven by pressure from activists and trial lawyers who cited a 2018 federal report claiming a link between EtO exposure and cancer. The chemical compound also is produced by automotive engines and gas grills, according to Sterigenics.
The Kamuda case was just the first of hundreds of similar lawsuits against Sterigenics to go to trial. In the second trial, a different jury ruled in favor of Sterigenics, denying claims from a Burr Ridge woman that her cancer was also linked to Sterigenics' emissions.
In denying the defendants’ requests to undo the Kamuda verdict, Quinn wrote “the jury heard extensive evidence that EtO emissions” contributed to Kamuda’s breast cancer, along with allegations the company lacked adequate emissions controls despite knowing the compound’s carcinogenic properties. She pointed to a 2002 Illinois Supreme Court opinion, Donaldson v. Central Illinois Public Service, which established plaintiffs in environmental exposure lawsuits can rely on circumstantial evidence to lead a jury to “infer other connected facts which usually and reasonably follow according to common sense experience.”
Quinn rehashed Kamuda’s panel of expert witnesses and said all encountered “vigorous cross examination. Any inconsistencies go to the weight of their testimony, not admissibility.” She further said Kamuda adequately alleged Sterigenics owed a duty of care to prevent a foreseeable injury and noted allegations the company performed no “modeling, monitoring, testing or analysis to determine the concentrations of EtO to which the community was exposed.”
Sterigenics also failed on its arguments regarding Kamuda’s claims of civil battery, public nuisance and willful and wanton conduct. With specific regard to Sotera, Quinn noted Kamuda’s evidence alleging the parent company “directed and worked alongside Sterigenics from 2004 through February 2019,” including having its executive team participating directly “in all operations and basic functions at the Willowbrook facility.”
Among those allegations, Quinn continued, are that “Kathy Hoffman, who worked at Sterigenics since 1997, became the top environmental health and safety officer for Sotera in 2004” after the acquisition. “There has been evidence presented that Ms. Hoffman’s responsibilities for Sotera included controlling EtO-related policies and procedures, yet Sotera chose not to monitor its emissions in Willowbrook and did not direct Sterigenics to do so.”
Quinn said the jury’s verdict did not contradict the manifest weight of the evidence presented at trial and rejected arguments she improperly denied defendants’ motions regarding the admissibility of scientific evidence, as well as evidence regarding Kamuda’s exposure to EtO after her 2007 triple negative breast cancer diagnosis and a report from the Office of Inspector General.
“One of the primary defenses presented was that the facility complied with applicable regulations, the agency issued permit and industry standards,” Quinn wrote. “The interactions between the Illinois Attorney General and the IEPA and limited references to former Gov. (Bruce) Rauner were relevant and necessary to address contested issues including knowledge of the risks of harm from EtO emissions from the facility, occurring after (Kamuda’s) cancer diagnosis and the increased risk of reoccurrence. The delay in the investigation of the missions facility had an impact on (Kamuda’s) continued exposure.”
Of the $363 million verdict, $38 million was ordered as compensatory damages and $325 million more as punitive damages. Sterigenics said it is believed this is the biggest single-plaintiff personal injury verdict in Illinois history.
Quinn said “the jury heard ample evidence to support” the compensatory damages and agreed with her decision to allow Kamuda’s team to push for punitive damages and that undoing or vacating its decision in that regard would be inappropriate.
Sterigenics has been defended by Bruce Braun, Kara McCall, Eric Mattson and Elizabeth Chiarello of the Chicago firm of Sidley Austin. The company also has been defended by Joe Hollingsworth, Eric Lasker, Matthew Malinowski and Ann Marie Duffy, of the Washington, D.C. firm of Hollingsworth.
Kamuda has been represented by attorneys Patrick A. Salvi II, Lance D. Northcutt, and Jennifer M. Cascio, of Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard, of Chicago; Shawn Collins and Margaret Galka, of The Collins Law Firm, of Naperville; and Scott A. Entin, Roisin Duffy-Gideon, and Deanna N. Pihos, of Miner, Barnhill & Galland, of Chicago.
In an emailed statement, a spokesperson for Sterigenics said: "We do not believe the jury verdict in the Susan Kamuda trial reflects the evidence presented in court. Sotera Health LLC and Sterigenics U.S., LLC will file a notice of appeal by January 18, 2023. We will continue to vigorously defend against allegations about our ethylene oxide operations and emissions. We remain committed to our mission of Safeguarding Global Health. As we have consistently done throughout our history, we will continue to operate in compliance with applicable rules and regulations to ensure the safety of our employees, the communities in which we operate and patients around the world.”
In an emailed statement, Salvi lauded the judge's decision to not upset the verdict.
“We are very pleased with the court’s ruling," Salvi said. "We believe the rulings are consistent with the law and evidence.
"This jury was amazing and worked very hard over six long weeks – attentive, always punctual and willing to put in extra time whenever asked. This is, in part, a testament to them.”