3M on a Losing Streak in Its Military Earplugs Cases

The 3M Company has lost another lawsuit over its combat earplugs, this time to the tune of $1.7 million. 

On Friday, June 18, a Florida federal jury ruled that a former United States service member had sustained hearing loss after using the earplugs, and that 3M was 62 percent responsible, Law360 reported. 

Plaintiff Lloyd Baker, a former infantryman and machine gun operator, was granted the $1.7 million in damages after the jury heard he suffered hearing loss in both ears and tinnitus from using the earplugs during training.

The case was one of three recent bellwether cases recently brought against 3M over the earplugs, with hundreds of thousands of claims pending. 

In the first trial of the multidistrict litigation in May, three military members who claimed their hearing was damaged by using defective earplugs manufactured by 3M were awarded more than $2 million each in punitive damages.

That trial, which started March 29, brought to a jury the first three claims of as many as 240,000 to come in the multidistrict legislation. In that case, 3M tried to have a mistrial declared three times, but each motion was denied. 

The jury awarded damages not just for hearing loss, but also for pain and suffering, medical costs, and lost earnings. 

3M has argued that the military should take responsibility for the design of the earplugs that didn’t prevent hearing damage, but so far, the majority of jury members haven’t bought it. 

Of the first three bellwether trials, the company has lost two and was cleared of liability in one. 3M told Law360 it is exploring its options for appeal in Friday’s case.

The 3M Earplug Background

The problem of the 3M earplug defect was initially brought to the attention of the government because of a whistleblower lawsuit in 2016.

Five years ago, the earplug maker Moldex-Metric Inc. filed a whistleblower lawsuit against 3M over the issue, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported. 

Moldex-Metric claimed that the earplug’s short length caused them to “loosen imperceptibly” during use, says the Star Tribune. Because the loosening was subtle, service members were allegedly in many cases unaware that anything was wrong and that their earplugs were too loose. So, service members allegedly continued to wear the earplugs in their loosened, less-effective state, which caused hearing loss.

In July 2018, 3M agreed to a $9.1 million settlement to resolve allegations that the company violated the False Claims Act and knew about the defective nature of its products at the time of the sale to the U.S. military. 

According to the investigation, the manufacturer of the earplugs may have known about problems with the product as early as 2002, selling defective earplugs for 13 years. Under the terms of the settlement, 3M has not admitted any guilt.

Meanwhile, more than 240,000 current and former members of the U.S. military are currently involved in litigation against 3M over its allegedly defective earplugs. 

Although these earplugs have since been discontinued, the 3M combat arms earplugs were standard issue equipment for soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan between 2002 and 2015 and may have harmed thousands of service members.

If you served in the military between 2002 and 2015, you may have been issued defective 3M combat arms earplugs. If you used these earplugs during your time in the military and have suffered subsequent hearing loss, tinnitus, or deafness, you may be able to pursue significant compensation for your injuries. Click here for more details. 

What do you think of the claims against 3M? Let us know in the comments! 

The plaintiffs in the three bellwether trials are represented by Bryan Aylstock of Aylstock Witkin Kreis & Overholtz, Shelley Hutson of Clark Love & Hutson, and Christopher Seeger of Seeger Weiss LLP.

The 3M Combat Arms Earplug Products Liability Litigation is Case No. 3:19-md-02885 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida. 

Read About More Class Action Lawsuits & Class Action Settlements:

• 3M Brand Military Earplugs Allegedly Failed to Protect Ears for 13 Years
• What’s Wrong with 3M Combat Arms Earplugs?
• What Are Combat Earplugs?
• 3M Earplugs Could Cause Military Hearing Loss