Law360 Article Highlights New Birth Defect Lawsuits Facing Boeing Co.

Birth Defects, Boeing

An article published by national legal industry publication Law360 examines two new lawsuits filed by Waters Kraus & Paul attorneys on behalf of Boeing Co. workers who claim that the company failed to protect them from harmful chemicals in use at its Seattle-area manufacturing facilities.

In “Boeing Blamed For Birth Defects In Factory Workers’ Children,” Law360’s Rachel Riley outlines the allegations filed in King County Superior Court. According to the lawsuits, top health experts within the company have known since 1980 about dangers and health risks posed by chemicals used in its manufacturing facilities.

Boeing workers exposed to toxic chemicals

The lawsuits were filed Sept. 8 on behalf of 6-year-old Logan Evans and 17-year-old Christian Kemmling and their families and claim that birth defects suffered by the children were caused by Boeing’s lack of protection from harmful chemicals, including toluene, xylene, methyl ethyl ketone and methyl propyl ketone, as well as cadmium and hexavalent chromium.

“The complaints allege Boeing toxicologists tracked research on chemically induced birth defects throughout the 1980s and 1990s, building an internal list of chemicals causing development toxicity that by 1986 included chemicals used by the plaintiffs’ fathers,” the Law360 article states.

30,000 Boeing Workers Exposed

According to the lawsuit, a Boeing occupational health manager informed former Boeing president Mel Stamper that since 1980, as many as 30,000 Washington state employees were regularly being exposed to toxic chemicals, some of which had the potential to cause birth defects.

Logan’s father was a mechanic at Boeing’s Everett, Washington, plant from 2014 to 2019. The child’s mother has worked at the plant since 2008. Christian’s father worked on Boeing aircraft assembly lines for more than 10 years.

“The company is accused of failing to warn employees about the chemical dangers, train them on how to properly handle hazardous substances, provide adequate protective gear and ventilation, and offer less chemical-intensive assignments to employees who are trying to have a baby,” the Law360 article states.

The cases are Logan Evans et al. v. The Boeing Co. et al., case number 23-2-17159-4, and Christian Kemmling et al. v. The Boeing Co. et al., case number 23-2-17146-2, in King County Superior Court.

Four other lawsuits have been filed in King County Superior Court against Boeing since 2020 over claims that the company did not protect workers from toxic exposure.

How We Help Victims of Boeing Toxic Exposure

Seek justice with the help of our experienced lawyers. Our birth defects law firm has battled corporate giants on behalf of individuals like you for 20 years, aggressively fighting to hold them responsible for dangerous chemicals and the birth defects and personal injuries they cause. If you have a child with birth defects caused by working at Boeing, we can help.