3M has agreed to pay $7.35 billion over nine years to resolve more than 100,000 personal-injury claims tied to its PFAS-based firefighting foam, a deal the company says covers up to 120,000 eligible plaintiffs, including firefighters and military personnel who used the foam in fire response and training. The Maplewood, Minnesota-based manufacturer announced the agreement on its investor webpage after markets closed on election night.
According to 3M's own announcement, the deal carries a nominal commitment of $7.35 billion but a present value of $5.8 billion once discounted over the payout period. The company says the agreement resolves roughly 99% of current personal-injury claims filed both inside and outside the federal multidistrict litigation over aqueous film-forming foam, commonly known as AFFF. As reported by the Minnesota Star Tribune, the case centers on firefighting foam containing PFAS chemicals, substances that do not biodegrade and have been linked to cancer and liver damage.
The payment schedule is backloaded: 3M says it will pay $50 million in 2026, nothing at all in 2027, and roughly 20% of the total in the final two years of the nine-year term. The company also said it will book a $5.8 billion pretax charge against its fourth-quarter 2026 earnings to account for the settlement.
CEO Calls It a Milestone, Not an Admission
3M CEO Bill Brown framed the settlement as a turning point for a company that has spent years untangling PFAS liability. In the company's statement, Brown said the agreement “is a significant milestone for 3M and substantially reduces litigation uncertainty,” calling it another step in managing legacy PFAS matters. 3M was explicit that the settlement does not amount to an admission of wrongdoing, and the company said it is prepared to keep fighting cases in court if agreed settlement terms are not fulfilled.
Plaintiffs' attorneys at Motley Rice, the South Carolina-based firm that represented claimants in the case, described the outcome as a favorable result for victims facing medical bills and other costs tied to toxic PFAS exposure, per the Star Tribune's reporting. PFAS exposure has been tied to a range of health effects; per CP24, the chemicals have been linked to liver damage, lower birth weight, reduced antibody response to vaccines, and kidney and testicular cancer.
A Second Multibillion-Dollar PFAS Deal in Three Years
This is not 3M's first blockbuster PFAS settlement. In June 2023, the company resolved a separate set of PFAS drinking-water contamination lawsuits in South Carolina federal court, agreeing to contribute up to a present value of $10.3 billion payable over 13 years to public water suppliers that had detected PFAS or might detect it in the future, according to 3M's own announcement at the time. The Star Tribune's reporting describes that 2023 drinking-water settlement as worth up to $12.5 billion paid over 12 years, while AP News separately reported that the eventual payout could range from $10.5 billion to $12.5 billion depending on additional contamination discovered — figures that differ from 3M's original $10.3 billion present-value framing. Together, the Star Tribune reports, the two settlements are worth nearly $20 billion.
3M has scheduled an investor teleconference for 8:30 a.m. Eastern time Wednesday to discuss the new agreement with analysts. The dossier of plaintiffs eligible to participate in the AFFF settlement spans firefighters and military personnel who handled the foam over decades, though how many of the 115,000 to 120,000 eligible claimants will ultimately join the deal, and how much any individual claimant stands to receive, has not been disclosed.
