• A milestone in Maryland environmental and legal history
BALTIMORE, MD, Dec. 31, 2008 -- Hassan Murphy, managing partner of The Murphy Firm, announced today that Judge Alfred Nance, Circuit Court Baltimore City, has approved the multimillion-dollar settlement of the firm's class action suit against Constellation Power Generation, a subsidiary of Constellation Energy, on behalf of residents of Gambrills, MD. The litigation claimed that Constellation contaminated residents water supplies and endangered lives by dumping coal ash in a sand and gravel quarry near their homes in Anne Arundel County for more than a decade.
The approved settlement totals $54 million.
The settlement provides for:
• The connection of 84 households, previously supplied by private wells, to public water;
• The establishment of two trust funds to compensate affected property owners and provide site enhancements in the neighborhood;
• The remediation and restoration of the former quarry site; and
• The commitment to cease future deliveries of new coal ash to the quarry;
• The costs and benefits of these expenditures, improvements and legal fees currently are estimated to be $54 million, said Hassan Murphy, managing partner of The Murphy Firm.
Murphy said, "The settlement is a milestone in Maryland environmental and legal history. It serves the plaintiffs' personal and economic rights, and provides for their future safety as well as long term restitution. The Murphy Firm along with The Angelos Firm is honored to have played a decisive role in bringing about a speedy, equitable solution to a significant problem which threatened potential long term dangers to both the environment and human well-being. This landmark settlement effectively mitigates risks of future harm. The tragic coal-ash spill in Tennessee demonstrates the devastating impact that coal-ash can have on unsuspecting communities. This settlement clearly signals communities near fly-ash dumps that they can reclaim their communities and regain their lives."
The Murphy Firm: The Murphy Firm specializes in complex civil litigation including commercial, personal injury, medical malpractice, employment, civil rights and class action. The Murphy firm is majority African-American owned and features an ethnically diverse group of attorneys with an extraordinary track record of success in jury verdicts, awards and settlements.
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