About the case
3M agreed to a $6 billion settlement covering approximately 260,000 claims by U.S. military service members who used Combat Arms Earplugs Version 2 between 2003 and 2015 and later reported hearing loss or tinnitus. The MDL became one of the largest federal multidistrict litigations in U.S. history by claim count. The settlement is not a classic small consumer-claim payout. It uses a structured program with different pathways, documentation requirements, and award calculations tied to service history and hearing-injury proof. That makes the case important for understanding how mass-tort settlements handle very large claimant pools without trying every individual case.
In re 3M Combat Arms Earplug Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2885 · N.D. Fla.