Most of the Metzger Law Group clients are disabled or suffering from terminal medical conditions caused by exposure to toxic chemicals.  Few law firms are able or willing to litigate toxic injury cases because it is very difficult and extremely costly to prove such claims.  The Metzger Law Group provides this litigation service to its severely injured clients, most of whom would otherwise be unrepresented. The firm also assists its clients in securing necessary medical care by establishing and proving that treatment is covered under clients’ medical insurance policies and group plans.

Many of the Metzger Law Group clients need organ transplants.  Health insurers and HMOs sometimes refuse to authorize transplants, claiming that they are not medically necessary or are excluded from coverage as experimental or investigational procedures.  The firm has persuaded a number of insurers that an organ transplant for a terminally-ill client is covered as an emergency service, and that most organ transplants are neither experimental nor investigational.  If necessary, the firm will file a lawsuit to obtain an injunction requiring an insurer to immediately authorize an organ transplant to save a client’s life and to litigate disputed coverage issues at a later date.

In 1986, California voters adopted the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act, commonly known as “Proposition 65.”  Proposition 65 makes it unlawful for anyone to discharge a chemical known to cause cancer or reproductive toxicity into drinking water or to expose Californians to such chemicals without first providing clear and fair warning.  The Metzger Law Group represents the Council for Education and Research on Toxics (CERT) and other charitable environmental and public health organizations in enforcing violations of Proposition 65.

The Metzger Law Group also advocates for the rights of workers and consumers suffering toxic injuries, persons who are terminally ill from toxic exposure, and the families of workers who have died of occupational diseases.  The firm has been seeking to persuade the California Judicial Council to make reasonable accommodations for terminally-ill litigants so that they are assured access to the courts and judicial processes despite their physical disabilities and terminal medical conditions. The firm is concerned that litigants with terminal medical conditions often do not obtain justice because the courts do not process their cases in an expedited manner.

The Metzger Law Group has also spearheaded efforts to unseal confidential settlements of toxic tort cases which prevent the public from learning of the nature and extent of toxic hazards that cause injuries.