Jury Awards $40 Million to Women in Johnson & Johnson Talc Case

A Los Angeles jury has awarded $40 million to two women who claim that talcum powder produced by Johnson & Johnson led to their diagnoses of ovarian cancer. The verdict, delivered on Friday, marks a significant moment in an ongoing legal battle surrounding the safety of talc-based products manufactured by the healthcare giant.

The case involved allegations that talc in Johnson’s Baby Powder and Shower to Shower body powder was connected not only to ovarian cancer but also to mesothelioma, a type of cancer affecting the lungs and other organs. The jury awarded $18 million to Monica Kent and $22 million to Deborah Schultz and her husband.

Daniel Robinson, the attorney representing the plaintiffs from the law firm Robinson Calcagnie in Newport Beach, California, emphasized the loyalty of his clients to Johnson & Johnson over the years. He stated, “The only thing they did was be loyal to Johnson & Johnson as a customer for only 50 years. That loyalty was a one-way street.”

In response to the verdict, Erik Haas, Johnson & Johnson’s worldwide vice president of litigation, announced that the company intends to appeal the jury’s findings. Haas pointed out that the company had successfully defended itself in 16 of the 17 ovarian cancer cases it previously tried. He described the jury’s conclusions as “irreconcilable with the decades of independent scientific evaluations confirming that talc is safe, does not contain asbestos, and does not cause cancer.”

This case is part of a broader narrative surrounding Johnson & Johnson’s talc products. In 2023, the company ceased global sales of talc-based powder following increasing scrutiny and declining sales. The situation was further complicated when a separate California jury ordered the company to pay $966 million to the family of a woman who died of mesothelioma, asserting that her cancer was caused by asbestos contamination in the baby powder.

The legal challenges for Johnson & Johnson continue to mount. In April of this year, a U.S. bankruptcy court judge rejected the company’s proposal to settle various ovarian cancer and gynecological cancer litigation claims linked to talc-based products for $9 billion.

As this case progresses, the implications for Johnson & Johnson are substantial, both financially and reputationally. The outcome of the appeal will likely influence not only the company’s future legal strategies but also the ongoing conversation about the safety of talc in consumer products.