Rebecca Newman Featured in “How To Poison A Planet” Documentary
Douglas & London senior associate Rebecca Newman ’08 is among those featured prominently in a documentary film titled "How To Poison A Planet," which goes behind the scenes of the largest litigation involving drinking water in American history and is having its international premiere at the SVA Theatre in New York on Thursday, Feb. 27.
The film, which also features actor and activist Mark Ruffalo and is directed by Katrina McGowan, tells the story of global contamination caused by manufactured chemicals known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), which enter the environment through various industrial and consumer products. The use of aqueous film forming foam, a fire suppressant that contains PFAS, was the focus of City of Stuart v. 3M, et al., multidistrict litigation that was centralized in the District of South Carolina in Charleston. As Newman and the legal team at Douglas & London, representing the plaintiffs, were preparing for their first PFAS case against 3M to go to trial, the documentary makers were shooting. (The trailer for the movie is here and ticket information is here.)
"While it was very cool to be featured in the documentary, it was happening at a time when we were extremely busy in full trial preparation mode, so the filming itself is a little bit of a blur,” Newman recalled. “But watching the documentary now and reliving some of those real moments that we had preparing for the Stuart trial, it is really neat to have had those moments captured.”
The judge delayed the start of the Stuart case, and in June 2023, Douglas & London announced that global chemical manufacturer 3M agreed to pay up to $12.5 billion to public water systems across the United States that have detected or were at risk for PFAS chemicals in their drinking water. The settlement funding is to go toward cleansing PFAS, often called “forever chemicals,” from water systems across the country.
Newman noted that while she is featured in the film, the legal victory was a group effort. Douglas & London was founded by another alumnus, firm partner Michael London ’97, who was pivotal in negotiating the settlement with 3M. His partner Gary J. Douglas was lead trial counsel in Stuart, the first, pivotal case that led to the settlement. Two other alumnae were also involved in the case: managing attorney Philippa Ratzki ’17, who was also on the settlement team, and associate Lara J. Say ’08, who was on the trial team.
It wasn’t the first environmental lawsuit for Newman, who joined Douglas & London after she graduated Brooklyn Law in 2008. Although she started off handling pharmaceutical litigation, she has been working on PFAS litigation for more than 10 years. Between 2013 and 2015 she worked with other members of the firm, including London and Douglas, to develop another multidistrict litigation case involving PFAS against DuPont that led to the settlement of more than 3,500 cases for approximately $671 million in 2017, with two other settlements following. Coincidentally, those three cases involving plaintiffs alleging cancer because of PFAS exposure from DuPont’s Washington Works plant between 2015-2016, were the inspiration for the 2019 Hollywood drama Dark Waters (in which Ruffalo is one of the stars).
After Newman’s work on the DuPont case, the 3M case that is the focus featured in the new documentary was a natural progression.
While the subject matter draws curious moviegoers, safeguarding people’s access to clean water is a professional passion for Newman.
“Environmental litigation, and in particular, representing water utilities suing over contamination of their water supplies, has been very clear cut for me, and protecting clean water is truly a passion of mine,” Newman said. “It is probably the number one natural resource in the world, and helping to keep that natural resource clean is one of the most satisfying goals I think one could have in their profession.”
Her advice for students who are interested in a similar career? “Personal injury law, and plaintiffs’ work, more generally, is really rewarding,” Newman said. “For one, the firms are generally smaller and thus you get to do higher level work much sooner in your career than typically occurs in Big Law. Two, you are usually wearing the white hat and standing up for the little guy, which can give a real sense of satisfaction.”
For those interested in personal injury law in particular, Newman advised “always try to take every opportunity that presents itself, even if it is challenging or unfamiliar territory. That is how you learn the most and get to be the best you can be.”