Water Treatment and Legionella

Our clients include virtually every type of participant involved with water handling systems including owners and owners' associations, design professionals, engineers, developers, suppliers, manufacturers, contractors, subcontractors, insurers, property managers and water treaters.

Our team includes attorneys with degrees in chemical engineering and more than 100 years of combined experience in construction, toxic torts and premises liability. Over the years, our attorneys have developed a unique understanding of issues involving water technology and water treatment. The Firm is a member and regular participant in industry groups including the Cooling Technology Institute and the Association of Water Technologies, where our chairman serves on technical committees, has authored and peer reviewed technical publications and is a regular speaker.

Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances.

• Water Technology and Water Treatment

• Defended $3.8 million personal injury negligence and toxic tort claims arising from water chemistry induced exposures involving claims of Spasmodic Dysphonia, Spasmodic Dysphagia and Thrombocitic Thrombocytopenic Purpura. The defense resulted in complete dismissal in the trial court based on defenses developed through toxicology, chemistry and epidemiologic evidence.

• Defended multimillion-dollar construction and equipment-failure claims involving both process and comfort cooling arising from corrosion, scale, erosion corrosion, improper design, passivation, layups, winterization/glycol issues, steam blows, operational errors, commissioning, hydraulic balancing, water flow, dead legs, stagnation, improper material selection, caustic gouging, flame impingement, improper boiler selection, improper hydrostatic pressure testing, and quick-fire boilers.

• Obtained complete dismissal and attorney's fees in multiparty "bet-the-company" under-deposit corrosion-based failure litigation wrongfully implicating the chemical water treater.

• Defended complex disputes, including contractual indemnity claims involving general contractors, HVAC mechanical subcontractors, architects, engineers, pipe suppliers, building maintenance providers, and water treaters.

• Advised on and defended water-related contamination issues involving lead and E.-coli.

• Prosecuted and defended water treatment-related non-competition, nondisclosure, and non-solicitation disputes.

• Authored and represented parties in non-competition disputes.

• Cooling Technology and Corrosion Science

• Represented one of 15 different defendants involved in the design, construction and commissioning of luxury high-rise condenser water system that catastrophically failed from insidious corrosion, under-deposit corrosion, scale and microbiological fouling. The client was the target defendant in a claim exceeding $8 million. The case against the client was disproven and completely dismissed through defenses involving metallurgy, engineering and chemical science. The client was awarded recovery of all attorney's fees incurred.

• Handled disputes involving open- and closed-loop systems, large- and small-bore condenser water piping, boiler water systems, and heat exchangers.

• Obtained outright dismissal and an award of attorney's fees after serving as lead counsel in multi-million-dollar claims incident to chemical water treatment.

• Legionella and Legionnaires' Disease

• Successfully defended the first reported Legionella wrongful death case against a chemical water treater and the first known Legionella lawsuit in the state of Mississippi. This multi-fatality action involved alleged damages exceeding $20 million. The case was defended at the federal trial court level resulting in complete dismissal and then again successfully defended in the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

• Successfully cross-examined experts in epidemiology, public health, mechanical engineering, water chemistry, and microbiology regarding Legionella outbreaks, causation, control, testing, treatment, and remediation.

• Extensive knowledge and experience with the history, development, and context of American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) 188, the 2017 Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Memorandum, "Requirement to Reduce Legionella Risk in Healthcare Facility Systems to Prevent Cases and Outbreaks of Legionnaires' Disease (LD)", the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Toolkits, and related guidance documents.

• Conducted extensive work with world-renowned experts in the fields of infectious disease, pulmonology, water chemistry, cooling systems, microbiology, industrial hygiene, chemical engineering, mechanical engineering, and public health.

• Provided knowledge and experience with public health authorities, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

• "North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality Unveils New Solar Management Regulations" (October 2024)
• "Top Privacy and Cybersecurity Issues to Track In 2024," Republished February 5, 2024, in CPO Magazine (January 2024)
• "New Legislation Will Require Critical Sector Entities to Report Certain Cyber Incidents," republished April 7, 2022 in, CPO Magazine (March 2022)
• "Planning to Fail – Comprehensive Water Treatment Specifications are a Must!," with Robert J. Cunningham, International Water Consultants (February 2020); Cooling Technology Institute Journal (Winter 2022)
• "Clean Water Act: Circuit and District Courts Start Addressing the Supreme Court's "Functional Equivalent" Requirement " (November 2021)

• Consulate of Italy in Detroit Announces Appointment of Christopher M. Caputo as Honorary Consul in Tennessee (February 12, 2025)

• Fred Wood Quoted in Law360 on Eight Shareholders Joining Baker Donelson in the Carolinas (March 4, 2024)
• Fred Wood Talks with Charlotte Business Journal About Launching New Baker Donelson Location (March 4, 2024)
• American Lawyer Highlights Launch of Charlotte Office and Addition of Eight Shareholders (March 4, 2024)