Robert Bilott is a well-known environmental attorney from Cincinnati, Ohio. He rose to prominence for filing lawsuits against DuPont on behalf of plaintiffs from West Virginia. Bilott has spent over 20 years of his life fighting against the harmful dumping of toxic chemicals, like perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid. This article will delve into the life of Robert Bilott and explore his early life, career, personal life, and net worth.
Robert Bilott Biography:
Robert Bilott was born on August 2, 1965, in Ohio, US. His father was a member of the United States Air Force, and as a result, Bilott spent his childhood on various air force bases. He attended eight different schools and completed his high school education from Fairborn High School in Fairborn, Ohio.
Bilott went on to complete a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science and Urban Studies from the New College of Florida. He later attended the Ohio State University Moritz College of Law and earned a Juris Doctor degree in 1990.
Career:
Robert Bilott began his legal career in 1990 after being admitted to the bar. He worked for the law firm Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he mainly worked for large corporate clients, specializing in defending chemical companies. In 1998, he became a partner at the firm.
In 1998, Bilott represented Wilbur Tennant of Parkersburg, West Virginia, whose cattle were dying due to DuPont’s dumping of hundreds of tons of PFOA. In 1999, he filed a federal lawsuit against DuPont, but the court declared that the tenants were responsible for their cattle’s death due to poor nutrition. However, Bilott soon discovered that DuPont had dumped thousands of tons of PFOA into a landfill next to the tenant’s property, contaminating the water supply. DuPont eventually settled the case with the tenants.
In 2001, Bilott filed a lawsuit on behalf of approximately 70,000 people in West Virginia, and the case was settled in 2004 for over $300 million. He also filed individual personal injury lawsuits against DuPont for those whose health was affected by the contaminated water supply. By 2015, the number of cases had increased to over 3,500, with DuPont settling all remaining cases for $671.7 million. In 2021, additional cases were settled for $83 million.
Robert Bilott has also been featured in articles in The Huffington Post and is part of the Fight Forever Chemicals campaign. He serves on the board of directors of Less Cancer and the board of trustees for Green Umbrellas. He was also part of the 2022 documentary Devil Put The Coal In The Ground, which explored the suffering and devastation caused by the coal industry.
Book and Film:
Robert Bilott is the author of the memoir Exposure: Poisoned Water, Corporate Greed, and One Lawyer’s Twenty-Year Battle against DuPont, published in 2019 by Atria Books. The audio version of the book is also available, with Jeremy Bobb as the narrator and Mark Ruffalo narrating the first chapter. The 2019 film Dark Water was based on Bilott’s story and starred Mark Ruffalo as Robert Bilott.
Personal Life:
Robert Bilott is married to Sarah Barlage and the couple has three children: Teddy, Charlie, and Tony.
Social Media:
Robert Bilott has 2.3K followers on Instagram (robert.bilott) and 13.5K followers on Twitter (@RobertBilott).
Robert Bilott Net Worth:
As of 2023, Robert Bilott’s net worth is not publicly available. His income and wealth are not disclosed, and it’s uncertain what his current financial status is. However, he is known for his successful legal career and his advocacy for environmental justice, which has earned him recognition and respect in his field.
Conclusion
Robert Bilott is a remarkable individual whose work has had a profound impact on the environment and on the lives of countless people. His dedication and commitment to environmental justice serve as an inspiration to all of us and remind us of the importance of protecting our planet for future generations.