Johnson & Johnson Ordered to Pay $40 Million in Key Talc Ovarian Cancer Trial
In a critical development that could affect thousands of lawsuits, Johnson & Johnson has been found liable for two women’s cancer diagnoses. In a major verdict on Friday, a California jury awarded $40 million to the two women who blamed their ovarian cancer on the use of J&J’s baby powder.
That outcome is significant because the trial was the first in a series of bellwether trials scheduled to take place in California state court over claims that the company’s once popular talc-based powder is tied to the development of ovarian cancer.
Bellwether trials act as test cases, helping both sides to better understand the strength of their arguments and what may happen if more lawsuits advance to trial. In addition to the California cases, more than 67,000 talcum powder lawsuits are also pending in federal court. A federal bellwether trial could also begin in the near future.
“This is a big win for all plaintiffs with pending ovarian cancer cases who have been waiting for answers,” said Whitney Ray Di Bona, attorney and consumer safety advocate at Drugwatch. “Johnson & Johnson has strongly challenged the science connecting ovarian cancer to its talcum powder products. In this case, the jury reviewed all the evidence and found there was a real link.”
The California trial, which lasted about a month, involved two women who said they developed cancer after using J&J baby powder products for decades. The jury decided to award damages to both women and one of their husbands.
The company has faced years of allegations that its talcum powder products could be tied to serious health conditions like mesothelioma and ovarian cancer.
In 2020, J&J decided to stop selling talc-based baby powder products in the United States as lawsuits mounted. At the time, the company said that the decision was due to shifting consumer habits “fueled by misinformation” about talc’s safety.
Following the verdict, more ovarian cancer trials are expected to soon get underway in California.
Trial Loss Follows J&J’s Failed Talc Lawsuit Settlement Attempt
J&J, which has long held that its baby powder is not connected to the development of ovarian cancer, attempted to move past this expansive litigation earlier this year by using the controversial “Texas Two-Step” bankruptcy procedure to settle pending cases for more than $8 billion.
A Texas Two-Step is a legal maneuver where a company essentially creates a new subsidiary that takes on its legal liabilities and then files for bankruptcy to resolve them.
A judge rejected that settlement approach in March, and J&J quickly made clear that it planned to pivot to battling these claims in trials instead of working on a new settlement.
“Rather than pursue a protracted appeal, the Company will return to the tort system to litigate and defeat these meritless talc claims,” the company said in a statement at the time.
But with the first post-bankruptcy trial going down as a resounding win for people who have filed lawsuits, it’s unclear if J&J’s strategy will change going forward. More losses in court could put pressure on the company to once again explore a talc settlement for the tens of thousands of pending cases.
“J&J has tried many ways to avoid responsibility for these lawsuits,” Di Bona said. “More verdicts like this could push J&J to offer a fair settlement and finally compensate the people and families harmed by their products.”
In addition to ovarian cancer cases, J&J has also faced numerous lawsuits over claims that its talcum powder is tied to the development of mesothelioma. In October, the company was hit with a massive $966 million verdict in a mesothelioma lawsuit trial in Los Angeles.
Litigation continues at both the state and federal levels, with more ovarian cancer cases expected to go before juries in the coming months.
