Nippon Dynawave Packaging Co. is seeking to dismiss one of the first lawsuits filed by the family members of employees killed in a chemical spill at the company’s paper mill in Longview, Washington, this spring. The company may be protected under the state’s century-old workers’ compensation act.

In documents filed this week in Cowlitz County Superior Court, attorneys for Nippon Dynawave argue the company should have immunity from Mackenzie Ammons’ lawsuit. Ammons’ husband, Jared Ammons, was killed along with 10 other employees.

Nippon Dynawave attorneys said liability would require the employer to have “had actual knowledge that an injury to Mr. Ammons was certain to occur,” the motion states, and that the company “willfully disregarded that knowledge.”

A spokesperson for Nippon Dynawave Packaging declined an interview request and instead referred OPB to a previous statement about Mackenzie Ammons’ lawsuit: “At this time, we are unable to comment on active litigation. NDP remains committed to approaching this difficult time with compassion and respect for those affected and for the Longview community.”

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Attorneys with the law firm Osborn Machler and Neff, who are representing Ammons, did not respond to an interview request.

Nippon Dynawave’s request to dismiss Ammons’ suit illustrates the limitations families of victims face as they seek recourse for an industrial disaster that has shocked their Southwest Washington community.

Ammons’ lawsuit is one of two that have been filed against the Longview paper mill seeking damages for the deaths of family members.

Experts in workplace safety say the cases hinge on Washington laws written over a century ago when the state first established programs to compensate workers for on-the-job injuries.

Outside of a lawsuit, the families will receive some level benefits through Washington’s workers’ compensation program, but it’s not clear how much.

Lawsuit alleges ‘run-to-failure’ policy

On the morning of May 26, a holding tank at the paper mill collapsed, releasing 900,000 gallons of caustic chemicals. Eleven workers, including Jared Ammons, were killed while getting ready for work. Another nine people were injured.

Mackenzie Ammons’ wrongful death lawsuit alleges the paper mill operated on a “run-to-failure” policy under which equipment was allowed to operate until broken.

Her suit references a U.S. Chemical Safety Board investigation showing outside inspectors had warned the company three times in the months before the incident that the walls of the chemical tank were weakened and there was a “high likelihood” that it could fail.

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Ammons’ lawsuit seeks undisclosed damages for her husband’s death. He was killed hours before going to an ultrasound visit with his pregnant wife, her lawsuit states.

‘Grand compromises’ for compensation

Nippon Dynawave’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit centers around Washington state’s 1911 industrial insurance act, which established the state’s workers compensation program.

The century-old state law was written as a compromise between labor and businesses: Workers would get rapid payment for injuries on the job. In return, employers would be largely immune from liability, according to Joel Kaufman, a physician and faculty member at the University of Washington’s Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences.

“In Washington state, the negligence test is very high,” he said.

“A reasonable person might come to a different conclusion than the way the law is currently written,” Kaufman said.

Nearly all U.S. states have such labor laws, said Glenn Shor, who worked for the California Department of Industrial Relations for 30 years. They are sometimes called the “grand compromise” because workers give up the right to sue in exchange for quick access to benefits.

“It seems outrageous,” Shor said, but “it’s not unique.”

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Even in conditions where there is negligence, it’s difficult for workers to successfully sue employers unless the company did not pay into a workers’ comp program, according to Shor.

“Getting around and allowing you to sue in court for a wrongful death, it’s very rare,” he said.

Both Shor and Kaufman said compensation families get through the workers compensation program is likely far less than anything they could get through litigation.

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2026/10/08/nippon-dynawave-dismisses-lawsuit-longview-widow/