Erin Brockovich (née Pattee; born June 22, 1960) is an American
legal clerk
A paralegal, also known as a legal assistant, or paralegal specialist is a professional who performs tasks that require knowledge of legal concepts but not the full expertise of a lawyer with a license to practice law. The market for paralegals ...
, consumer advocate, and environmental activist who, despite her lack of education in the law, was instrumental in building
a case against Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E) involving groundwater contamination in
Hinkley,
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
with the help of attorney
Ed Masry in 1993. Their successful lawsuit was the subject of the
Oscar
Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to:
People
* Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms.
* Oscar (Irish mythology) ...
-winning film, ''
Erin Brockovich
Erin Brockovich (née Pattee; born June 22, 1960) is an American legal clerk, consumer advocate, and environmental activist who, despite her lack of education in the law, was instrumental in building a case against Pacific Gas & Electric Compan ...
'' (2000), starring
Julia Roberts
Julia Fiona Roberts (born October 28, 1967) is an American actress. Known for her leading roles in films encompassing a variety of genres, she has received multiple accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and th ...
as Brockovich and
Albert Finney as Masry. Since then, Brockovich has become a media personality as well, hosting the TV series ''Challenge America with Erin Brockovich'' on
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
and ''Final Justice'' on
Zone Reality
CBS Reality is a European television channel broadcast in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
History
CBS Reality was launched as Reality TV on 1 December 1999 as a joint-venture between UPCtv and Zone Vision. In 2005, Liberty Global, owner of U ...
. She is the president of Brockovich Research & Consulting. She also works as a consultant for the New York law firm of
Weitz & Luxenberg,
which has a focus on personal injury claims for
asbestos exposure, and
Shine Lawyers
Shine Lawyers is an Australian law firm specialising in personal injury compensation law, operating on a no win no fee basis. The firm has expanded into providing professional negligence, coal seam gas and aviation law legal services through a ...
in Australia. She worked as a consultant for the now-defunct California law firm
Girardi & Keese.
Early life
Brockovich was born Erin Pattee in
Lawrence, Kansas, the daughter of Betty Jo (born O'Neal; 1923–2008), a journalist, and
Frank Pattee (1924–2011), an industrial engineer and football player. She has two brothers, Frank Jr. and Thomas (1954–1992), and a sister, Jodie. She graduated from
Lawrence High School, then attended
Kansas State University, in
Manhattan, Kansas
Manhattan is a city and county seat of Riley County, Kansas, United States, although the city extends into Pottawatomie County. It is located in northeastern Kansas at the junction of the Kansas River and Big Blue River. As of the 2020 c ...
, and graduated with an Associate in Applied Arts Degree from
Wade College
Wade College is a private, for-profit college in Dallas, Texas. It awards Associate of Arts degrees and Bachelor of Arts degrees in fashion design and merchandising. The college was founded in 1962 as Miss Wade's Fashion Merchandising College and ...
in Dallas, Texas.
Pacific Gas & Electric litigation
The case (''Anderson, et al. v. Pacific Gas & Electric,'' file BCV 00300) alleged contamination of drinking water with
hexavalent chromium
Hexavalent chromium (chromium(VI), Cr(VI), chromium 6) is chromium in any chemical compound that contains the element in the +6 oxidation state (thus hexavalent). Virtually all chromium ore is processed via hexavalent chromium, specifically the ...
(also written as "chromium 6", "chromium VI", "Cr-VI" or "Cr-6") in the town of
Hinkley, near
Barstow in
southern California
Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...
. At the center of the case was a facility, the Hinkley
compressor station, built in 1952 as a part of a
natural-gas
Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbon di ...
pipeline connecting to the
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Go ...
. Between 1952 and 1966, PG&E used hexavalent chromium in a cooling tower system to fight
corrosion
Corrosion is a natural process that converts a refined metal into a more chemically stable oxide. It is the gradual deterioration of materials (usually a metal) by chemical or electrochemical reaction with their environment. Corrosion engi ...
. The waste water was discharged to unlined ponds at the site, and some of the waste water percolated into the
groundwater
Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available freshwater in the world is groundwater. A unit of rock or an unconsolidated ...
, affecting an area of approximately near the plant. The Regional Water Quality Control Board (RWQCB) put the PG&E site under its regulations in 1968.
The case was
settled
A settler is a person who has migrated to an area and established a permanent residence there, often to colonize the area.
A settler who migrates to an area previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited may be described as a pioneer.
Settle ...
in 1996 for (US) $333 million, the largest settlement ever paid in a direct-action lawsuit in United States history to that date.
Masry & Vititoe, the law firm for which Brockovich was a legal clerk, received $133.6 million of that settlement, and Brockovich received $2.5 million as part of her fee.
A study released in 2010 by the California Cancer Registry showed that cancer rates in Hinkley "remained unremarkable from 1988 to 2008".
An
epidemiologist
Epidemiology is the study and analysis of the distribution (who, when, and where), patterns and determinants of health and disease conditions in a defined population.
It is a cornerstone of public health, and shapes policy decisions and evidenc ...
involved in the study said that the 196 cases of
cancer
Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...
reported during the most recent survey of 1996 through 2008 were fewer than what he would expect based on demographics and the regional rate of cancer.
However, in June 2013, ''
Mother Jones
Mary G. Harris Jones (1837 (baptized) – November 30, 1930), known as Mother Jones from 1897 onwards, was an Irish-born American schoolteacher and dressmaker who became a prominent union organizer, community organizer, and activist. She h ...
'' magazine featured a critique from the
Center for Public Integrity
The Center for Public Integrity (CPI) is an American nonprofit investigative journalism organization whose stated mission is "to reveal abuses of power, corruption and dereliction of duty by powerful public and private institutions in order to ...
of the author's work on the later epidemiological studies.
, average Cr-6 levels in Hinkley were recorded as 1.19
ppb with a peak of 3.09 ppb. For comparison, the PG&E
Topock Compressor Station on the California-Arizona border averaged 7.8 ppb with peaks of 31.8 ppb based on a PG&E Background Study.
Other litigation
Working with
Edward L. Masry
Edward Louis Masry (July 29, 1932 – December 5, 2005) was an American lawyer, a partner in the law firm of Masry & Vititoe and also a mayor and city councilman for the City of Thousand Oaks, California. With the help of his legal assistant Erin ...
, a lawyer based in
Thousand Oaks, California
Thousand Oaks is the second-largest city in Ventura County, California, United States. It is in the northwestern part of Greater Los Angeles, approximately from the city of Los Angeles and from Downtown Los Angeles, Downtown. It is named af ...
, Brockovich went on to participate in other anti-pollution lawsuits. One suit accused the Whitman Corporation of chromium contamination in
Willits, California
Willits (formerly Little Lake and Willitsville) is a city in Mendocino County, California, United States. It is located about north-northwest of Ukiah, at an elevation of . The population was 4,988 at the 2020 census. Willits is at the center ...
. Another, which listed 1,200
plaintiff
A plaintiff ( Π in legal shorthand) is the party who initiates a lawsuit (also known as an ''action'') before a court. By doing so, the plaintiff seeks a legal remedy. If this search is successful, the court will issue judgment in favor of the p ...
s, alleged contamination near PG&E's Kettleman Hills compressor station in
Kings County, California
Kings County is a county located in the U.S. state of California. The population was 152,486 at the 2020 census. The California Department of Finance estimated the county's population was 152,940 as of July 1, 2019.http://dof.ca.gov/Forecastin ...
, along the same pipeline as the Hinkley site. The Kettleman suit was settled for $335 million in 2006.
In 2003, after experiencing problems with mold contamination in her own home in the
Conejo Valley
The Conejo Valley is a region spanning both southeastern Ventura County and northwestern Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States. It is located in the northwestern part of the Greater Los Angeles Area.
Communities in the Conejo ...
, Brockovich received settlements of $430,000 from two parties, and an undisclosed amount from a third party, to settle her lawsuit alleging
toxic mold
Mold health issues refer to the harmful health effects of molds ("moulds" in British English) and their mycotoxins. However, recent research has shown these adverse health effects are caused not exclusively by molds, but also other microbial agen ...
in her
Agoura Hills, California
Agoura Hills () is a city in the Santa Monica Mountains region of Los Angeles County, California, United States. Its population was 20,330 at the 2010 census, which decreased to
20,299 in 2020. It is in the eastern Conejo Valley between the ...
, home. Brockovich then became a prominent activist and educator in the area as well.
![Erin brockovich 2016](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ae/Erin_brockovich_2016.jpg)
Brockovich and Masry filed suit against the
Beverly Hills Unified School District
The Beverly Hills Unified School District, abbreviated BHUSD, is a school district based in Beverly Hills, California. It was unified into an elementary and high school district in 1936. Serving the city of Beverly Hills, it consists of one middl ...
in 2003, in which the district was accused of harming the health and safety of its students by allowing a contractor to operate a
cluster of oil wells on campus. Brockovich and Masry alleged that 300 cancer cases were linked to the oil wells. Subsequent testing and epidemiological investigation failed to corroborate a substantial link, and
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Wendell Mortimer granted summary judgment against the plaintiffs. In May 2007, the school district announced that it was to be paid $450,000 as reimbursement for legal expenses.
Brockovich assisted in the filing of a lawsuit against Prime Tanning Corp. of
St. Joseph
Joseph (; el, Ἰωσήφ, translit=Ioséph) was a 1st-century Jewish man of Nazareth who, according to the canonical Gospels, was married to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and was the legal father of Jesus. The Gospels also name some brothers ...
,
Missouri
Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...
, in April 2009. The lawsuit claims that waste sludge from the production of leather, containing high levels of hexavalent chromium, was distributed to farmers in northwest Missouri to use as fertilizer on their fields. It is believed to be a potential cause of an abnormally high number of brain tumors around the town of
Cameron, Missouri
Cameron is a city in Clinton, DeKalb and Caldwell counties in the U.S. state of Missouri. The population was 8,513 at the 2020 census.
The Clinton and Caldwell counties portion of Cameron are part of the Kansas City, MO– KS Metropolitan ...
. Prior to the lawsuit, the site was investigated by the EPA and at the time, the agency found "no detections of total chromium", and added, "we would like to get any specific information from this law firm as soon as we can so we can evaluate it, and we intend to ask for that directly." The EPA, Missouri Department of Natural Resources, Missouri Department of Health and a state epidemiologist had been investigating what residents believed were a high number of brain tumors in the area — more than 70 since 1996. The epidemiologist had stated the numbers did not seem abnormally high.
In June 2009, Brockovich began investigating a case of contaminated water in
Midland,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
.
"Significant amounts" of hexavalent chromium were found in the water of more than 40 homes in the area, some of which have now been fitted with state-monitored filters on their water supply.
Brockovich said: "The only difference between here and Hinkley is that I saw higher levels here than I saw in Hinkley."
In 2012, Brockovich became involved in the mysterious case of 14 students from
LeRoy,
New York, who began reporting perplexing medical symptoms, including tics and speech difficulties.
Brockovich believed
environmental pollution
Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that cause adverse change. Pollution can take the form of any substance (solid, liquid, or gas) or energy (such as radioactivity, heat, sound, or light). Pollutants, th ...
from the
1970 Lehigh Valley Railroad derailment was the cause and conducted testing in the area. Brockovich was supposed to return to LeRoy to present her findings, but never did; in the meantime, the students' doctors determined the cause was
mass psychogenic illness
Mass psychogenic illness (MPI), also called mass sociogenic illness, mass psychogenic disorder, epidemic hysteria, or mass hysteria, involves the spread of illness symptoms through a population where there is no infectious agent responsible for c ...
, and that the media exposure was exacerbating the symptoms. No environmental causes were found after repeat testing, and the students improved once the media attention died down.
In early 2016, Brockovich became involved in potential litigation against
Southern California Gas
The Southern California Gas Company (trading as SoCalGas) is a utility company based in Los Angeles, California, and a subsidiary of Sempra Energy. It is the primary provider of natural gas to Los Angeles and Southern California.
Overview
Its ...
for
a large methane leak from its underground storage facility near the community of
Porter Ranch
Porter Ranch is a suburban neighborhood in the northwest San Fernando Valley region of the City of Los Angeles, California.
History
New home construction that was completed in the Porter Ranch area in the 1990s–2000s, including the Renaiss ...
, north of Los Angeles.
Awards
*
Honorary Doctor of Law
A Doctor of Law is a degree in law. The application of the term varies from country to country and includes degrees such as the Doctor of Juridical Science (J.S.D. or S.J.D), Juris Doctor (J.D.), Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), and Legum Doctor (LL ...
s and commencement speaker at
Lewis & Clark Law School
The Northwestern School of Law of Lewis and Clark College (also known as Lewis & Clark Law School), is an American Bar Association-approved private law school in Portland, Oregon.
The law school received ABA approval in 1970 and joined the As ...
,
Portland
Portland most commonly refers to:
* Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States
* Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...
,
Oregon
Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
, in May 2005
* Honorary
Doctor of Humane Letters
The degree of Doctor of Humane Letters (; DHumLitt; DHL; or LHD) is an honorary degree awarded to those who have distinguished themselves through humanitarian and philanthropic contributions to society.
The criteria for awarding the degree differ ...
and commencement speaker at
Loyola Marymount University
Loyola Marymount University (LMU) is a private Jesuit and Marymount research university in Los Angeles, California. It is located on the west side of the city near Playa Vista. LMU is the parent school to Loyola Law School, which is located ...
,
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, California, on May 5, 2007
* Honorary
Master of Arts
A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...
, Business Communication, from
Jones International University
Jones International University (JIU) was a private online for-profit university headquartered in Centennial, Colorado. It was accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. The university closed after the Class of 2015 graduated.
History
In 1987 ...
,
Centennial
{{other uses, Centennial (disambiguation), Centenary (disambiguation)
A centennial, or centenary in British English, is a 100th anniversary or otherwise relates to a century, a period of 100 years.
Notable events
Notable centennial events at ...
,
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
Movies and television
Brockovich's work in bringing litigation against Pacific Gas & Electric was the focus of the 2000 feature film ''
Erin Brockovich
Erin Brockovich (née Pattee; born June 22, 1960) is an American legal clerk, consumer advocate, and environmental activist who, despite her lack of education in the law, was instrumental in building a case against Pacific Gas & Electric Compan ...
'', starring
Julia Roberts
Julia Fiona Roberts (born October 28, 1967) is an American actress. Known for her leading roles in films encompassing a variety of genres, she has received multiple accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and th ...
in the title role. The film was nominated for five
Academy Awards
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
: Best Actress in a Leading Role, Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Best Director, Best Picture, and Best Writing in a Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen. Roberts won the
Academy Award for Best Actress
The Academy Award for Best Actress is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance in a leading role in a film released that year ...
for her portrayal of Erin Brockovich. Brockovich herself had a
cameo role as a waitress named Julia R.
Brockovich had a more extensive role in the 2012 documentary ''Last Call at the Oasis'', which focused on not only water pollution but also the overall state of
water scarcity
Water scarcity (closely related to water stress or water crisis) is the lack of fresh water resources to meet the standard water demand. There are two types of water scarcity: physical or economic water scarcity. Physical water scarcity is whe ...
as it relates to
water policy
Water politics, sometimes called hydropolitics, is politics affected by the availability of water and water resources, a necessity for all life forms and human development.
Arun P. Elhance's definition of hydropolitics is "the systematic study ...
in the United States.
On April 8, 2021, ''
Rebel
A rebel is a participant in a rebellion.
Rebel or rebels may also refer to:
People
* Rebel (given name)
* Rebel (surname)
* Patriot (American Revolution), during the American Revolution
* American Southerners, as a form of self-identification; ...
'', a television series which creator
Krista Vernoff
Krista Vernoff (born October 25, 1971) is an American television screenwriter, executive producer and director. She is best known for running the television medical drama ''Grey's Anatomy'' (2007–11, 2017–present) and its spin-off ''Station 1 ...
loosely based on Brockovich's life, premiered on
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
.
Books and articles
Brockovich's first book, ''Take It from Me: Life's a Struggle But You Can Win'' (), was published in 2001. A second book, ''Superman's Not Coming'', was released on August 25, 2020.
In 2021, Brockovich wrote about hormone-disrupting chemicals (such as
PFAS
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are synthetic organofluorine chemical compounds that have multiple fluorine atoms attached to an alkyl chain. An early definition, from 2011, required that they contain at least one perfluoroalkyl mo ...
) decimating human fertility at an alarming rate.
[
]
On February 8, 2022, Brockovich wrote an article talking about the case of
Steven Donziger, a lawyer who won a $18 billion judgment against Chevron before being jailed for contempt of court after refusing to turn his phone and computer over to Chevron's legal team.
Personal life
Brockovich has three children: a son, Matthew, and a daughter, Katie, from her first marriage to Shawn Brown, and a daughter, Elizabeth ("Beth"), from her second marriage to Steven Brockovich.
Her third husband was actor and country-musician DJ, Eric L. Ellis.
As of 2016, Brockovich resides in
Agoura Hills, California
Agoura Hills () is a city in the Santa Monica Mountains region of Los Angeles County, California, United States. Its population was 20,330 at the 2010 census, which decreased to
20,299 in 2020. It is in the eastern Conejo Valley between the ...
, in a house she purchased in 1996 with her US$2.5 million bonus after the Hinkley settlement.
References
External links
Official website of Erin BrockovichThe Brockovich Report BrockovichBlog.comBrockovich VillageOfficial MySpace of Erin Brockovichbiography on
the Biography Channel
FYI (stylized as fyi,) is an American basic cable channel owned by A&E Networks, a joint venture between the Disney Media Networks subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company and Hearst Communications (each owns 50%). The network features lifestyle pr ...
*
'' Evening with Erin Brockovich'' in Sydney, hosted by the ''Climate Change Coalition'' 2007Detail about Hinkley caseat AwesomeStories.com
at salon.com
Weitz & Luxenberg PCShine Lawyers AustraliaEnvironmental Justice SocietyErin Brockovichvideo produced by ''
Makers: Women Who Make America''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brockovich, Erin
1960 births
Living people
American environmentalists
Kansas State University alumni
People from Lawrence, Kansas
People from Agoura Hills, California
Pacific Gas and Electric Company
American women activists
Activists from California
American women environmentalists
21st-century American women