Chinese lawyers plan collective lawsuit over tainted milk

After weeks of discussions, the 15 lawyers decided Thursday to bundle cases involving nearly 100 families into a single lawsuit against state-owned Shijiazhuang Sanlu Group Co., the dairy at the center of China's worst food safety crisis in years.

The lawsuit seeks medical and other expenses, payments for trauma and compensation for the families of those who died.

"The victims have suffered and they deserve to be compensated," Beijing-based lawyer Xu Zhiyong said.

Going ahead with the lawsuit marks a significant uptick in confrontation between the families and the authoritarian government in a scandal that Beijing has tried to keep out of the public eye in recent weeks.

The lawsuit threatens to expose government mishandling of a case that again has tarnished the reputation of China's food products abroad.

On Thursday, U.S. food safety officials said dozens of imported foods from China made with milk will be held at ports until tests show they are free of the industrial chemical at the center of the scandal.

The melamine contamination was first reported in September. More than 54,000 children, mostly infants, fell sick and at least three died by official count from drinking tainted infant formula, powdered milk and dairy products. Melamine was believed to have been added to artificially boost nitrogen levels, making products seem higher in protein when tested.

Beijing has shied away from addressing any government responsibility and has said Sanlu has promised unspecified compensation. Reporters and lawyers say authorities have pressured them to stay away from the issue.

The lawyers have been assisting the families for months and they agreed Thursday to move ahead with the lawsuit, planning to file it at the Hebei High People's Court in Shijiazhuang, the northern city where the dairy is based, Xu said.

The lawyers postponed setting a date to file the lawsuit until after they hold talks with the company, Xu said.

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