Meta’s Teen Safety Settlement Is a Start. Here’s What Parents Should Do This School Year.
Recently, I joined a briefing Meta hosted for parent and child-safety advocates on its new agreement with a bipartisan coalition of state attorneys general. Antigone Davis, Meta’s global head of safety, walked through what will change on Instagram and Facebook for teenagers, and she was candid about the agreement’s limits. One line stayed with me. […]
OSHA Reviewing Benzene Standards
On July 28, 2026, OSHA reopened the rulemaking record on proposed revisions to the federal benzene standard and gave the public an additional 30 days to comment. The comment window closed on August 27, 2026 and the record is moving towards a final rule. Read the full Federal Register notice here. Benzene is recognized as […]
Coming Home: Angela Houchins on Family, Faith, and the Fight for the Everyday Person
It was December 1989 when Locks Law Firm took a chance and hired Angela straight out of Army JAG. Angela found a mentor in Marc Weingarten, learning the ropes at a firm whose bread and butter in those days was asbestos litigation: massive volume, bulk filings, bulk settlements, and a rhythm of work built around […]
When regulation isn’t enough: The growing importance of plaintiffs’ attorneys
In 1970, Congress passed the Occupational Safety and Health Act, and President Nixon signed it into law that December, creating OSHA with a straightforward but ambitious mandate: to assure safe and healthful working conditions for America’s workers. The results over the following decades were significant. Workplace fatalities have fallen dramatically since 1970, even as the […]
El costo oculto de las encimeras de cuarzo
El nuevo material para encimeras de cuarzo, conocido también como piedra artificial o cuarzo de diseño, contiene concentraciones extremadamente altas de sílice cristalina. Cortar, esmerilar y pulir las losas de piedra artificial libera partículas respirables de sílice capaces de penetrar profundamente en los pulmones de los trabajadores y causar silicosis, una enfermedad incurable que en […]
The 95% Rule: What the J&J Talc Settlement Reveals About Mass Litigation
On July 27, 2026, Johnson & Johnson announced a $5.5 billion deal to resolve roughly 76,000 lawsuits alleging its talc products caused ovarian cancer. This is the fourth attempt at resolution. The deal isn’t final and hinges on at least 95% of eligible claimants signing on. The talc claims were never certified as a class […]
A Hot Topic – Being Smart About Playing Sports in the Heat
Planning Is the Key to Preventing Heat-Related Injuries When I first wrote about heat-related sports injuries in 2015, I began by noting that July 2015 had been the warmest month ever recorded globally and that nine of the ten warmest months on record had occurred since 2005. At the time, those statistics were startling. Today, […]
Nearly 50 Years in the Trenches with Marc Weingarten
Before there was an asbestos litigation practice at 1500 Walnut Street, there were hearing-loss cases. Gene Locks was representing Philadelphia Naval Shipyard workers in hearing loss federal compensation claims when he noticed they kept telling him that they had an unusual lung disease that he learned was called asbestosis. That front-row seat to the pattern […]
Summer Interns: Building Skills for Future Lawyers
Every summer, a new group of interns joins Locks Law, expecting to learn about the law. They are eager to learn from the entire team, from paralegals to partners. They sit in on depositions and research experts. Quickly, each one discovers just how much happens before anyone ever says, “Your Honor.” This year’s class comes […]
New Jersey Moves to Give Trafficking Survivors the Time They Deserve
Francesca Iacovangelo, Locks Law Firm Much of my work at Locks Law Firm is about giving voice to victims, so for someone who comes to work every day to defend victims’ rights, it was gratifying to see New Jersey Senate Bill 1270 pass the Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously. The bill, which would substantially extend the […]
Chelsea Tank Farm – Massive Gasoline Leak
Berger Montague and Locks Law Firm File Class Action for Residents Affected by Massive Gasoline Leak at Aston, Pa. Chelsea Tank Farm The Complaint alleges that Monroe Energy, LLC and MIPC, LLC concealed a months-long leak that released approximately 378,000 gallons of gasoline into a Delaware County neighborhood, contaminating soil, groundwater, drinking water, and indoor […]
Chris Johnson’s ALS Diagnosis Is a Heartbreaking Reminder of Football’s Hidden Costs
Throughout my career, the core of my work has been helping people in need, often those suffering medical repercussions from their work, whether from asbestos exposure, benzene, or years spent playing in the NFL. In an emotional interview on “Good Morning America,” former NFL running back Chris Johnson revealed that he was diagnosed last year […]