Johnson & Johnson Hit With $40 Million Verdict in Talc Powder Lawsuit

J&J Ordered to Pay $40 Million in Talc Powder Ovarian Cancer Case.

A California jury has awarded $40 million to two women who claimed that Johnson & Johnson’s (J&J) talc-based baby powder caused their ovarian cancer. The verdict, delivered Friday in Los Angeles Superior Court, grants $18 million to Monica Kent and $22 million to Deborah Schultz and her husband.

The jury concluded that J&J knew about the potential dangers of its talc products for decades but failed to warn consumers. Kent was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2014 and Schultz in 2018. Both testified that they had used J&J baby powder for decades, often after bathing, and had undergone extensive treatments including major surgeries and chemotherapy.

J&J’s global VP of litigation, Erik Haas, said the company plans to appeal immediately, arguing that adverse verdicts like this are “aberrant.” The plaintiffs’ attorneys, however, claimed that J&J was aware of the risks as far back as the 1960s and deliberately concealed them.

J&J maintains that its products are safe, asbestos-free, and do not cause cancer. The company stopped selling talc-based baby powder in the U.S. in 2020, switching to a cornstarch alternative.

The company is facing lawsuits from more than 67,000 plaintiffs, most claiming ovarian cancer, with a smaller number alleging rare mesothelioma. Previous verdicts against J&J have ranged from multi-million-dollar awards to billions, though the company has won some cases outright and had others reduced on appeal. Attempts to resolve the litigation through bankruptcy have so far been rejected.

This trial marks the first since J&J’s latest Chapter 11 bankruptcy bid was dismissed, signaling that talc litigation is far from over.