In a string of high-stakes legal defeats for Johnson & Johnson, a Los Angeles jury on Monday ordered the company to pay $966 million to the family of Mae Moore, who died in 2021 from mesothelioma, after finding it liable in a talc-cancer lawsuit. The verdict is among the largest to date in ongoing claims that asbestos in J&J’s baby powder products caused fatal illnesses.
The Moore family had sued in 2021, alleging that J&J’s talc-based baby powder products were contaminated with asbestos fibers and that long-term exposure led to the development of mesothelioma. The jury awarded $16 million in compensatory damages and a staggering $950 million in punitive damages, according to court documents.
Under legal precedent from the U.S. Supreme Court, such high punitive awards may be subject to reduction on appeal, often capped at around nine times compensatory damages. Many analysts expect J&J to contest the judgment vigorously.
J&J has long denied that its products contain asbestos or cause cancer, maintaining they are safe when used as intended. The company stopped selling talc-based baby powder in the U.S. in 2020 and replaced it with a cornstarch formula.
This verdict lands amid a tumultuous legal landscape for J&J. The company has been entangled in a massive multidistrict litigation (MDL) involving more than 60,000 talc-related claims, most centered on allegations of ovarian cancer, but including mesothelioma and other diseases.
Earlier this year, J&J attempted to settle many of those cases via a $9–10 billion bankruptcy plan, by isolating talc liability in a subsidiary (Red River Talc LLC). But a U.S. bankruptcy judge rejected that strategy, citing irregularities in the voting process and insufficient support from victims.
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