Brockovich, Erin

Erin Brockovich (born June 22, 1960) is an environmental activist and public speaker who was instrumental in constructing a groundbreaking legal case against the Pacific Gas and Electric Company of California in 1993. Acclaimed Hollywood director Steven Soderbergh directed the film version of Brockovich's story, Erin Brockovich, in 2000.

While working as a file clerk for the law firm Masry & Vititoe, and with no previous legal experience, Brockovich found medical records that led to an investigation that eventually established that the health of numerous individuals who lived in the Hinkley area of California in the 1960s to 1980s had been severely compromised by exposure to the toxic chemical chromium 6, which had leaked into the groundwater and poisoned the local water supply. The case was centered on the Hinkley Compressor Station, which was part of a natural gas pipeline connecting the San Francisco Bay area, constructed in 1952. Between 1952 and 1966, the company used chromium 6 in the cooling tower, which led to some of the wastewater seeping into the groundwater, affecting a large area near the plant.

Brockovich co-led the case against the Pacific Gas and Electric Company, and in 1996, $333 million in damages to more than 600 residents of the Hinkley area was paid by the utility company-the largest toxic injury settlement in U.S. history. Brockovich [Page 196]continued her legal work and went on to participate in other antipollution cases, including a lawsuit that listed 1,200 plaintiffs and alleged contamination near Pacific Gas and Electric's Kettleman Hills Compressor Station in Kings County, California, along the same pipeline as the Hinkley site. The Kettleman Hills suit settled the case in 2006 for $335 million.

Erin Brockovich has received numerous awards and honors for her work in protecting the environment.

In 2000, Steven Soderbergh directed the film version of Brockovich's legal battle with the Pacific Gas and Electrical Company, Erin Brockovich, which highlighted both Brockovich's legal triumph and her personal challenges. Released in March 2000 by Universal Studios, the movie starred Julia Roberts, Albert Finney, and Aaron Eckhart. The release of the film, to great critical and commercial success, led to numerous awards and nominations, including five Academy Award nominations and one win for Roberts in the Best Actress category. Roberts also won a Golden Globe and a BAFTA Award for best actress for her portrayal of Brockovich. Soderbergh was nominated for an Academy Award for best director.

The film's central concern and the majority of discussion surrounding Brockovich and the Hinckley case was focused on the portrayal of Brockovich as a strong, independent, and feminine woman and single mother who, despite a lack of formal legal training, managed to succeed in winning such a groundbreaking case. The film also examines issues of class, gender, and the environment situated within the larger framework of Brockovich's story.

Since the release of the film, Brockovich became an initially reluctant public figure who has since hosted her own television shows including Challenge America With Erin Brockovich on ABC and Final Justice on Lifetime. In 2001, she published “Take It From Me!: Life's a Struggle but You Can Win,” which became a best seller. In the book, ostensibly a self-help book, Brockovich provides readers with motivational strategies and tips that led her to discover certain aspects of her own personality that have allowed her to face both personal and professional challenges.

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