Fidelma Fitzpatrick litigates environmental contamination claims on behalf of various states, cities, counties and individuals. She held a central role in the state of Rhode Island’s lead paint trial against former corporate manufacturers of lead paint. Fidelma continues to manage cases seeking to hold the lead paint industry accountable for the childhood lead poisoning crisis and provide restitution and compensation to affected children and families. As a result of her work for lead poisoning victims, the Wisconsin State Supreme Court became the first to recognize the legal rights of poisoned children to sue lead pigment manufacturers. She worked on similar litigation filed by the City of New York and the City and County of San Francisco.

In addition to her work on lead poisoning issues, Fidelma represents communities and individuals in other toxic tort and environmental matters, including property damage and personal injury claims. She played a lead role in representing the community of Tallevast, Florida, in a lawsuit against Lockheed Martin Corporation involving the pollution of the community’s groundwater with PCE and TCE.  Fidelma is currently litigating nuclear contamination cases on behalf of Pennsylvania and Tennessee residents who allege that local nuclear facilities exposed them to hazardous levels of toxic or radioactive material in the surrounding air, soil and water. Those cases, involving both personal injuries and property damage, are pending in federal court.

Fidelma’s experience with complex civil litigation has also led her to represent other victims of corporate malfeasance. She plays a central role in representing hundreds of women allegedly harmed by transvaginal mesh/sling products in hundreds of filed cases in both federal and states courts against defendants that include American Medical Systems, Inc. (AMS), Boston Scientific, C.R. Bard, Inc., and Johnson & Johnson.   

Fidelma began working with Motley Rice attorneys in 1997 on the Massachusetts, New York and Rhode Island groundbreaking lawsuits against the tobacco industry.