A Civil Action 1998

In the industrial city of Woburn, Massachusetts, a sinister plot unfolds as environmental toxins in the water supply claim the lives of numerous local children. Against this backdrop of tragedy, Jan Schlichtmann (John Travolta), a confident Boston attorney and his small firm of personal injury lawyers, are approached by Anne Anderson (Kathleen Quinlan), a grieving mother seeking justice for her son’s Leukemia diagnosis two years prior. Despite being handled by Jan’s firm, Anne has been left in the dark about the status of her case, sparking her determination to take matters into her own hands.

As Jan delves deeper into the situation, he discovers that Woburn has suffered a staggering 12 Leukemia-related deaths over the past 15 years. Furthermore, water sample tests reveal alarming levels of contamination with known carcinogens in two of the town’s wells. Confronted by the gravity of the situation, Jan’s partners - Kevin Conway (Tony Shalhoub), James Gordon (William H. Macy), and Bill Crowley (Zeljko Ivanek) - ultimately decide that the case requires significant financial resources to pursue, leaving them no choice but to drop it.

However, Kevin’s reluctance to engage with the community prompts Jan to volunteer for the task, despite knowing the potential financial risks. With his firm driven by a bottom-line mentality, Jan views each client through the prism of their value - be it the worth of a middle-aged victim or the relative insignificance of an African American life.

Jan’s expertise lies in dramatizing the victim’s injuries and suffering to sway juries and secure lucrative settlement offers. But as he begins to meet with the affected families, they uniformly crave not only compensation but also accountability from those responsible for their loss. Jan must confront his own moral ambiguity when faced with the cruel reality that his firm can only take on cases with deep-pocketed defendants.

Anne’s persistence proves instrumental in convincing Jan to take a stand against the forces of negligence and greed, setting the stage for a gripping battle between justice and indifference.

As Jan’s initial skepticism towards a seemingly insignificant environmental case begins to dissipate, he uncovers a far-reaching issue of groundwater contamination with profound legal implications. The discovery of potential links between Leukemia cases and local tanneries owned by Beatrice Foods and W. R. Grace and Company sets his sights on taking on the giants in a bid for financial windfall and professional prestige.

Jan’s adversaries, Jerry Facher (Robert Duvall) and William Cheeseman (Bruce Norris), are well-equipped to defend the interests of their corporate clients. As Jan embarks on a class action lawsuit in federal court, he represents families seeking justice and environmental cleanup. However, the case takes on a life of its own, engulfing Jan’s personal and professional life.

To build his case, Jan must hire a geologist (Jay Patterson) to prove that the tanneries’ effluents migrated into underground wells and subsequently contaminated residents’ homes. This requires a team of experts, including engineers, to conduct on-site tests on John Riley’s (Dan Hedaya) private property – the site of the offending tannery.

Jan interviews numerous staff members, including Al Love (James Gandolfini), but fails to find direct evidence of harmful chemicals being released into the environment. Al reveals that barrels of TriChloroEthylene (TCE) were discarded at the back of the factories and shares his personal experience of family members afflicted by debilitating illnesses, which could have originated from contaminated water.

Cheeseman’s attempt to extract information from Al about the barrels’ location only serves to further solidify the worker’s resolve against exposing the truth. Riley’s deposition is equally uncooperative, as he maintains that TCE was never used in his tannery.

As the stakes rise, Jan and his partners find themselves at a crossroads, with their professional and financial survival dependent on the outcome of this one case. With the firm’s resources strained by the costs of testing and preparing for trial, James advises that every partner is now invested in this singular pursuit. To stay afloat, they must turn to Uncle Pete (Ned Eisenberg), a banker willing to lend them the necessary capital to keep their practice afloat.

As the truth begins to unravel, Al’s conscience finally gets the better of him, and he confesses his wrongdoings to Anne. He then shares with Jan the precise details of where the TCE barrels were dumped, which are subsequently corroborated by another tannery employee, Bobby Pasqueriella (Paul Ben-Victor). This revelation leads Jan to uncover a shocking truth: multiple barrels of TCE were clandestinely dumped in an artificial lake dubbed the “Swimming pool”.

As the case gains momentum, Jan is acutely aware that it’s approaching a critical juncture. Statistics indicate that only 1.5% of the approximately 780,000 cases filed annually actually make it to trial. Meanwhile, Jerry reaches out to Jan with an unexpected proposal: he wants Jan to cut Beatrice out of the lawsuit and focus solely on Grace. Jerry offers to cover Jan’s expenses, but Jan refuses indignantly, warning that this could harm his case against Grace.

Jan’s determination is tested as he stubbornly declines settlement offers, gradually coming to realize that the case transcends mere financial gain. Pride begins to take over, prompting him to make outlandish demands (including a staggering $25 million in cash, $25 million for a research foundation, and $1.5 million per family per year for 30 years). Jan becomes resolute in his pursuit of victory at all costs, despite the mounting pressures that push him and his partners deeply into debt.

In an act of desperation, Kevin mortgages every material possession he owns to fund the case, including the deeds to the houses of all four partners. The trial commences with Jan’s team presenting a wealth of scientific evidence. Riley claims ignorance about how his private property became the most polluted parcel in New England, portraying himself as a respected member of the community who kept his tannery open and provided employment when others abandoned ship.

Judge Walter J. Skinner (John Lithgow) delivers a pivotal ruling against the plaintiffs, disallowing the testimony of Woburn’s victims on the grounds that the toxic chemicals’ impact on the wells has not been proven. Jerry had successfully convinced Skinner of this very same point. The judge then poses three critical questions to the jurors: whether contamination occurred, when did it reach the wells, and when did it begin causing disease among the local population.

As the dust settles following a marathon trial, the scales of justice ultimately tip in favor of Beatrice, with Grace being held accountable for contamination. The unexpected twist: Jan’s refusal to accept a lucrative $20 million settlement offer from Beatrice’s attorney, Jerry Facher, during jury deliberations sealed the fate of the case. The plaintiffs are left with a meager $8 million settlement, barely enough to cover the expenses incurred throughout the trial, leaving them financially ruined and emotionally drained.

The families, once hopeful for justice, are met with disappointment as they receive a mere $375,000 per family after deducting expenses, without so much as an apology or promise of environmental remediation. The fallout is devastating: Jan’s partners abandon their law firm, effectively ending the partnership and leaving Jan to face the music alone. He is forced to start anew, operating a small practice from a modest apartment.

Though defeated, Jan refuses to give up on the case. He tracks down the final key witness, but lacking the resources or courage to appeal the verdict, he is left feeling powerless. It isn’t until a fortuitous lunchtime epiphany strikes that he begins to see a way forward. Recognizing that the real culprits were those who enabled the leather company’s cover-up, Jan sets out to uncover their identities and passes on their contact information to a rival law firm.

The tables are turned as the leather company is forced to settle and ultimately files for bankruptcy. Jan’s files are archived, and he too files for bankruptcy, bringing an ignominious close to his once-promising career.

In a surprising coda, the EPA builds upon Jan’s work and launches its own enforcement action against Beatrice and Grace, forcing them to pay millions to rectify the environmental damage they caused. It takes Jan several years to dig out from beneath the weight of debt, but he eventually finds redemption by specializing in environmental law in New Jersey.