A Civil Action is a 1996 book by Jonathan Harr about a lawsuit revolving around water contamination in Woburn, Massachusetts. Anne Anderson's son is diagnosed with leukemia, leading to a discovery of high leukemia rates in the city. The realization leads to a lawsuit led by lawyer Jan Schlichtmann against Beatrice Foods and W.R. Grace, two companies whose industrial activities have contaminated the water supply. The families gather settlements and eventually the EPA required the companies to clean up their hazardous mess.
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