An Appeal Submitted To Retain a $72 Million Talcum Verdict

An Appeal Submitted To Retain a $72 Million Talcum Verdict

Introduction

The Johnson & Johnson’s Talcum powder case in which the verdict of $72 million was dismissed in October 2017 was put forth for an appeal by the family of the plaintiff, an Alabama woman who developed ovarian cancer due to the long-term use of J&J’s Talcum powder. This case was the first case to win financial damages in J&J’s Talcum lawsuits; however, the verdict was dismissed by the Missouri Eastern District Court on the grounds that the jurisdiction was improper (based on the U.S. Supreme Court’s June 2017 decision in Bristol-Myers Squibb v. Superior Court of California), according to which the plaintiffs may only file suit in jurisdictions where defendants are headquartered or where their injuries are alleged to have occurred. This decision came in two weeks after the Appeals Court denied their motion for a rehearing.

J&J is defending nearly 5,500 talcum powder lawsuits, filed by women who claim they developed ovarian cancer due to the long-term use of products promoted for feminine hygiene by the defendant. The motley of lawsuits are filed under MDL No. 2738- In re: Johnson & Johnson Talcum Powder Products Marketing, Sales Practices and Products Liability Litigation formed in 2016, presided by Hon. Freda L. Wolfson, U.S.D.J./ Hon. Lois H. Goodman, U.S.M.J., in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey; hundreds of lawsuits are also filed in Missouri's 22nd Circuit Court in St. Louis, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri; cases are also filed in state courts in California and Delaware.