Johnson & Johnson is seeking to resolve thousands of lawsuits alleging that its talc-based products, including its well-known baby powder, caused cancer, with the company proposing a settlement worth about $5.5 billion.
The legal dispute has continued for more than 15 years, with the first cases emerging in 2009. More than 70,000 claims remain pending, involving allegations that talc products caused ovarian cancer or mesothelioma, a rare cancer affecting the lining around internal organs.
Plaintiffs have argued that talc can occur naturally near asbestos deposits and that some products sold by Johnson & Johnson were contaminated with asbestos. The company has consistently denied that its talc products caused cancer, describing the claims as without merit.
Johnson & Johnson eventually reformulated its baby powder and later stopped using talc in the product, replacing it with cornstarch. The company has said the changes reflected falling sales rather than concerns over product safety.
The company says it has won the overwhelming majority of ovarian cancer cases that reached trial. However, several major verdicts have resulted in substantial financial awards.
In 2018, a St Louis jury ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay $4.7 billion to 22 women. The award was later reduced to $2.1 billion on appeal. More recently, the company was ordered to pay $966 million to the family of a Los Angeles woman who died from mesothelioma and $1.5 billion to a Baltimore woman who also blamed the disease on talc exposure. Johnson & Johnson has said it will appeal those rulings.
The cases have also produced internal documents that plaintiffs say support their claims. Documents released during litigation included material concerning company testing for asbestos in talc dating back decades.
Johnson & Johnson had previously attempted to resolve its talc liabilities through a bankruptcy strategy known as the “Texas Two-Step”. The approach involved separating liabilities from the company’s operating assets before placing the liability-holding entity into bankruptcy.
Courts rejected the company’s bankruptcy attempts, leaving Johnson & Johnson facing continued litigation. The proposed settlement now offers another route to resolving many of the outstanding claims.
The agreement would require approval from 95% of plaintiffs before it could take effect. Several law firms involved in the litigation have expressed support for the proposal, although some lawyers believe the eventual cost could be higher.
Johnson & Johnson says the settlement would allow it to move past the long-running dispute and focus on its medicines and medical devices business.
Even if the $5.5 billion proposal is approved, the company’s total financial exposure could exceed $10 billion when existing court awards are included. The company remains financially strong, reporting net profit of $26.8 billion last year.
The settlement would rank among the largest corporate payouts arising from product-related litigation, although it would remain below major settlements linked to tobacco, vehicle emissions and other large-scale corporate disputes.
