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Santa Rosa finalizes settlement in long‑running JM Manufacturing PVC litigation
Summary
City attorney reported the city finalized a settlement with JM Manufacturing in a decades‑old false claims case: as part of the settlement the city will receive a 50‑year retroactive extended warranty on JM pipe used in city projects and will remove a specification that previously excluded JM pipe from design standards.
City Attorney reported to the council that the City of Santa Rosa finalized a settlement in a long‑running matter of United States ex rel. John Hendricks v. JM Manufacturing Company, Inc., a false claims case in which the city and 34 other public entities had intervened as plaintiffs.
Under the settlement finalized in May, the city will dismiss its claims in exchange for JM Manufacturing providing a 50‑year retroactive extended warranty covering JM pipe that the city paid for or reimbursed for use on city projects. The city also agreed to remove language from its design and construction standards that previously precluded the use of PVC pipe manufactured by JM in city projects.
The city attorney told council that because the city retained outside counsel on a contingency fee basis, the city incurred no attorney fees or litigation costs in connection with the case. The attorney noted the city continues to handle about 32 current litigation matters across various stages, with many cases in discovery and a few in appellate proceedings. The attorney said staff continues to pursue resolution of smaller matters when feasible to limit city costs.
Ending
The council received the report; the city attorney characterized the settlement as finalized and noted the change to design standards. No further council action on this item was recorded during the meeting.
