Post by : Rameen Ariff

Johnson & Johnson has been ordered by a California jury to pay $966 million to the family of Mae Moore, who blamed her cancer on long-term use of the company’s talc-based baby powder. The verdict is the largest awarded to a single user in the 15-year-long litigation over J&J’s iconic product.

The Los Angeles state court jury found J&J responsible for Moore’s mesothelioma, a cancer linked to asbestos exposure. Moore, who died in 2021 at age 88, was awarded $16 million in compensatory damages and $950 million in punitive damages. Her family argued that the company concealed the health risks of its talc products.

Erik Haas, J&J’s Worldwide Vice President of Litigation, said the company will appeal, calling the verdict “egregious and unconstitutional” and inconsistent with most other talc-related cases where J&J had prevailed.

The verdict comes as J&J prepares for a series of jury trials over its talc-based baby powder, which it withdrew from the global market in 2023. The company previously attempted, unsuccessfully, to use bankruptcy courts to settle tens of thousands of claims.

Jessica Dean, the lawyer representing Moore’s family, said, “It took this family five years to get their day in court, and we are pleased the jury held J&J accountable.”

While J&J has already spent over $3 billion settling lawsuits alleging asbestos in its baby powder caused cancer, more than 70,000 claims remain. Many of these cases are consolidated before a federal judge in New Jersey for pre-trial procedures.

Several juries have already held J&J and its Kenvue spinoff responsible for users’ cancers, awarding billions in damages, although many awards were later reduced or overturned on appeal.

J&J continues to maintain that its talc products never contained asbestos and that talc does not cause cancer. The company also claims it marketed baby powder responsibly for over a century.

Plaintiffs, however, cited internal documents suggesting J&J knew about asbestos in its talc since at least the early 1970s. Mae Moore reportedly used J&J’s baby powder and Shower-to-Shower products for around 80 years. Jurors concluded that the company intentionally misled Moore by not warning her of the cancer risks.

The largest previous trial verdict against J&J was $4.7 billion in 2018 for 20 women in Missouri, later reduced to $2.1 billion on appeal, with J&J paying $2.5 billion including interest. Moore’s award may also be reduced, as US Supreme Court guidelines suggest punitive damages should not exceed 10 times compensatory awards.

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