A Los Angeles jury ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay $966 million to the family of a woman who died of mesothelioma, as the court found that the company’s talc products contained asbestos and caused cancer.
J&J denies the allegations and plans to appeal; additionally, the company claims the decision is based on “junk science.”
J&J is facing lawsuits from more than 67,000 plaintiffs who say they were diagnosed with cancer after using baby powder and other talc products, according to court filings. The number of lawsuits alleging talc caused mesothelioma is a small subset of these cases, with the vast majority involving ovarian cancer claims.