A federal appeals court seems poised to uphold a decision that snuffed out a whistleblower complaint filed by New York-based litigation heavyweight Kasowitz Benson Torres, which could have netted the firm billions if successful.

The firm in 2016 filed a qui tam complaint against four of the country’s largest chemical companies. claiming they failed to hand over information to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency about the substantial risk of injuries posed by isocyanate, a common chemical used in a variety of consumer products. While representing coal miners in a prior lawsuit, Kasowitz lawyers uncovered company documents that showed that just touching or inhaling a small amount of isocyanate could cause permanent pulmonary injury in humans.