On Friday, April 5, a jury in Long Beach, California, rejected a talcum powder lawsuit brought by a 65-year-old retired teacher, who claimed that Johnson & Johnson's baby powder was contaminated with asbestos and was the reason for his cancer.
The plaintiff who used J&J’s baby powder daily for personal hygiene was diagnosed with mesothelioma in July 2017, and he blamed asbestos exposure from the talcum powder for his disease and filed a complaint two months later. At the end of the five-week trial, the jury returned a unanimous verdict in favor of J&J Consumer Inc., rejecting the plaintiff’s claims. The talcum giant asserted that its baby powder was free from asbestos and did not cause the plaintiff’s disease. The plaintiff's attorney confirmed the jury verdict and told they still believe J&J's talc-based products are contaminated with asbestos, considering the hundreds of historical test results proving the presence of carcinogens in its talc. The verdict came in a week after the company settled three similar cases linked to its baby powder and a rare form of cancer, mesothelioma. Two of those cases were settled during their trial in Oklahoma and California, and another one in New York was settled just less than two weeks before the trial.
There are more than 13,000 lawsuits filed against J&J linking its talc products to ovarian cancer or mesothelioma. The company will face more than two dozen trials in different U.S. courts this year.
