SOURCE:
https://cen.acs.org/policy/litigation/pfas-consumer-3m-dupont-chemours-eidp-corteva/104/web/2026/07
by Bec Roldan - July 13, 2026
New York attorney general Letitia James sued chemical manufacturers (PDF) 3M, DuPont, Corteva, Chemours, and EIDP in state court on July 9 for their role in contributing to pollution and other alleged harms from the use of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in consumer products.
The lawsuit alleges that the companies failed to warn the public about the risks to human health and the environment from the use of PFAS they manufactured. The failure-to-warn allegation is one of eight causes of action in the lawsuit.
“Big companies like 3M and DuPont knowingly sold toxic products that threatened New Yorkers’ health and polluted our environment for decades. It’s time for them to pay for the damage they caused,” James says in a press release.
Chemical manufacturers have faced a growing number of lawsuits in recent years for drinking-water and environmental pollution stemming from PFAS contamination. These companies also face increasing scrutiny over PFAS in consumer goods.
In 2024, Texas attorney general Ken Paxton sued 3M, Corteva, DuPont, and EIDP (PDF) for misrepresenting the safety of PFAS-containing products like Teflon, Stainmaster, and Scotchgard. The lawsuit is still underway. New York’s lawsuit follows a similar argument as the Texas lawsuit, alleging that these companies misled the public on the safety of PFAS-containing products like Stainmaster carpets, cosmetics, and grease-resistant coatings.
Attorney General James claims that “the companies knew early on that PFAS were toxic, persistent, and accumulated in humans, plants, and animals, yet hid this information from the public”, the press release states. This allegedly led to “decades of toxic polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) pollution in New York.”
The New York–based nonprofit environmental organization Citizens Campaign for the Environment is “thrilled” about the lawsuit, the executive director Adrienne Esposito tells C&EN. “The polluters should pay for the remediation and the damage they’ve done,” she says, noting that cosmetics and coatings on frying pans can contaminate water supplies, which the taxpayers then have to pay to clean up.
The lawsuit would hold the companies liable for environmental and health damages from PFAS products, require them to fund remediation efforts, and prevent them from selling any products containing PFAS without warnings. The lawsuit also seeks other penalties, including damages and payback of illegally earned profits.
In addition to the lawsuit, New York has joined other states in pursuing PFAS regulations in the absence of federal regulations of PFAS in consumer products. Since 2019, New York has banned PFAS in carpets, apparel, firefighting foam, and food packaging. And at least 16 other states have imposed restrictions or bans on PFAS in certain consumer products, according to Safer States, an alliance of environmental health organizations.
C&EN reached out to 3M, DuPont, Corteva, and Chemours for comment but did not hear back by publication time.