Public Advocate Presents Oral Arguments in Lead Paint Case
Before the State Supreme Court

Trenton, N.J. -- New Jersey Public Advocate Ronald K. Chen appeared as an amicus curiae, or “friend of the court,” today when oral arguments began before the New Jersey Supreme Court determining if local municipalities can hold paint manufacturers accountable for the cost of removing paint contaminated with lead.

Scheduled for 11:15 a.m., Chen will also argue that the municipalities that brought the lawsuit are entitled to full evidentiary hearings. He said if municipal allegations are proven to exist, then the paint manufacturers should be compelled to pay for remediation.

“Thousands of children in New Jersey currently suffer from lead poisoning because they are exposed to lead-based paint in and around their homes,” Chen said.  “The dangers of lead exposure have been well known for many decades.  The local governments that initially brought this case are entitled to a full evidentiary hearing and if their allegations are proven, then the paint manufacturers should be compelled to contribute to the elimination of this hazard.”

In 2001, 26-public entities in New Jersey, including Camden and Newark, filed a lawsuit against lead-paint manufacturers and distributors seeking to recover their costs for lead detection and abatement programs, medical screening and monitoring, and programs educating residents on the dangers of lead paint.

The case was dismissed by Superior Court Judge Maria Corodemus in November 2002, prior to a trial being conducted.  The trial court dismissed the lawsuit after finding that the lawsuit, based on the public nuisance doctrine, was not permitted under the Lead Paint Statute enacted by the Legislature in 1971.

In August 2005, however, the lawsuit was reinstated by the Appellate Division which found that the Legislature did not intend to deprive municipalities of their traditional power to protect public heath and safety.  The defendant paint manufacturers appealed to the New Jersey Supreme Court.   

Chen stated in his amicus brief that the facts alleged by the municipalities in their lawsuit indicate that the paint manufacturing industry knew of the dangers of exposure to lead-based paint long before a 1978 nationwide ban prohibited residential use of lead-based paint. 

The dangers of exposure to lead-based paint were also known well before 1950, when paint was manufactured with lead levels as high as 50 percent.

Lead is an extremely dangerous toxin that directly damages red blood cells, the kidneys, and the nervous system.  Lead has particularly devastating effects on the still developing systems of children and can cause life long physical and mental disabilities and even death.

Lead based paint in New Jersey housing is the principal cause of lead poisoning and lead exposure among the State’s children.  According to the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services, almost 1 million homes in New Jersey were built before 1950, the time period lead paint was most widely used.   

As many as an additional 1.5 million housing units were built between 1950 and 1978. In 2003, 3.12 percent of the 167,702 children who were tested for lead exposure had elevated levels of lead, nearly twice the national average of 1.6 percent of children between the ages of one and five.   

“Most children, however, are not tested, and there is growing evidence that even lower levels of lead in a child’s blood may have serious consequences, so these statistics significantly understate the magnitude of this public health threat,” Chen said. 

“The issue of responsibility for lead remediation is of great public interest to every community in New Jersey, and the lawsuit brought against these paint manufacturers warrants a full and complete airing of the facts in a court of law.  That is all these communities are asking, and they are entitled access to our courts to resolve this issue.”


Read the Advocate's brief