Former employee sues AMD for son's birth defects

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Former employee sues AMD for son's birth defects

Posted: 12 Nov 2007

 

A former Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) employee accused the

company and a regional medical association of being responsible for

birth defects of her son, born with a missing lower right arm and

lifelong cognitive deficits.

 

Maria Ruiz worked in AMD's Fab 14 clean room from 1988 to 2001,

according to a statement issued on behalf of attorney's working on

behalf of the Ruiz family.

 

" Maria Ruiz worked with hazardous chemicals that caused her son's

devastating birth defects, " said Adam Ward, a partner in Allison &

Ward LLP, the filing attorney. The team working on behalf of the Ruiz

family includes Steven Phillips of Levy Phillips & Konigsberg LLP, who

represented litigants in a similar case against IBM that were settled

before reaching trial.

 

The Ruiz versus AMD lawsuit alleges that Ruiz was wrongfully exposed

to birth defect-causing hazardous chemicals during her pregnancy and

that AMD knowingly failed to protect its workers from hazardous

chemicals. The petition also includes medical malpractice allegations

against a family/occupational health practitioner and an obstetrics

and gynecology specialist at Austin Regional Clinic. MDs George

Marking and Alinda Cox allegedly failed to warn the pregnant woman of

the recognized dangers posed by exposure to the chemicals, according

to the lawsuit.

 

The toxic chemicals that Ruiz was exposed to included ethylene glycol

monoethyl ether acetate and 2-ethoxyethyl acetate, which caused the

birth defects in her son, Ryan, the statement alleges. On at least two

occasions during her employment, Ruiz required medical care due to

inhaling chemical fumes, according to the statement.

 

After Ruiz discovered she was pregnant, she inquired about the health

risks from working in the clean room during her pregnancy but was

returned to work in Fab 14, according to the statement. Ryan, who

turned 16 on Oct. 31, suffered multiple birth defects, including a

missing right arm below his elbow, brain injury and cognitive

deficits.

 

" Like millions of Americans, Maria Ruiz did not realize that 'clean

rooms' are designed to keep damaging dust particles from semiconductor

wafers during manufacturing, not to protect men and women exposed to a

spectrum of hazardous chemicals and fumes, " said Phillips.

 

The five-count petition charges negligence, breach of warranty, fraud

and fraudulent concealment and misrepresentation, Exemplary damages

are being sought in the suit. Austin-area TV viewers have been seeing

commercials seeking persons with knowledge of the clean rooms and

semiconductor wafer manufacturing at AMD in Austin to contact Allison

& Ward LLP.

 

- Peter Clarke

EE Times Europe

 

 

This article was printed from EE Times-Asia located at:

http://www.eetasia.com/ART_8800488494_480200_NT_b0b219f7.HTM

http://www.eetasia.com/ART_8800488494_480200_NT_b0b219f7.HTM