The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit shot down a complaint against companies like 3M and DuPont this week after determining the plaintiff lacked standing to proceed with claims that the defendants caused the presence of five particular chemicals in his bloodstream, known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS.

The plaintiff, Kevin Hardwick, filed a complaint against numerous defendants, claiming they were responsible for the traces of PFAS in his bloodstream after spending over 40 years as a firefighter and using firefighting foams that contained PFAS, according to a Nov. 27 opinion.