Fall 2012 Class Descriptions As of 5/25/2013 3:19:01 AM Toxic
Substances/Toxic Torts The Problem of Toxics: Toxic Substances
and Toxic Torts In 1984, a Union Carbide plant in Bhopal, India
accidentally released a chemical that caused the deaths of more
than 2,800 people and injured tens of thousands. A year later,
another accidental release at a Union Carbide plant in West
Virginia sent 135 people to the hospital and provoked fears that
a disaster such as Bhopal could occur in the United States. This
course explores the problem of toxics: substances arguably
necessary to our industrialized society with the potential to
cause injury to human health and the environment. How should
government manage the risk of these substances? And what is the
role of common law in compensating those who are exposed? The
course will be divided into two parts. First, we will discuss
several different regulatory approaches taken to control toxics
-- for example, outright bans, risk-benefit balancing, and
warnings. Our primary foc