Judge delays class-action hearing
Tuesday, November 25, 2003
JEREMIAH STETTLER
THE SAGINAW NEWS
Residents suing Dow Chemical Co. on dioxin contamination claims will have to wait a month longer to find out if their lawsuit will gain class-action status.
Saginaw County Chief Circuit Judge Leopold P. Borrello today delayed a hearing that could elevate the case to a class-action suit.
The hearing previously was scheduled for Jan. 27. Borrello delayed it until Feb. 24.
Nearly 1,800 residents along the Tittabawassee River have claimed the chemical giant polluted their properties with dioxin, a byproduct of chlorine manufacturing and other industrial processes.
Dow attorneys told the judge they have received just a sliver of the information ordered by the court. They said they had received just three e-mails before Nov. 18 and only two inches of documents before filing the motion that day.
"We have over 150 people who have produced no documents," said Dow attorney Kathleen A. Lang. She said the plaintiffs have broken their promise to turn over documents "in weekly intervals as we receive it."
Jane Helder, an attorney representative for the residents, says he has done nothing to obstruct the court's order. He told the judge he had submitted 1,861 pages to Dow already and plans to release another 1,000 pages by the court-mandated deadline Monday.
Helder said Dow needs to remember that the plaintiffs are ordinary citizens.
"We are talking about people who work during the day," he said. "These are ordinary people who are asked to dig through their basements, attics and safety deposit boxes."
That's no excuse, said Dow spokesman Scot Wheeler.
"Mr. Helder brought this suit," he said. "Mr. Helder agreed to deliver this information, has dragged his feet in delivering it and has delayed the process."
Helder said he has flown three out-of-state paralegals into Saginaw to gather records full-time from the 179 named plaintiffs to meet Monday's deadline. t
Jeremiah Stettler is a staff writer for The Saginaw News. You may reach him at 776-9685.
© 2003 Saginaw News.
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