A Ramsey County jury has found that Johnson & Johnson must pay Anna Jean Houghton Carley $65.5 million. She eventually caught mesothelioma after using the company’s talcum powder as a child. The aggressive cancer is primarily linked to exposure to asbestos, which the plaintiff’s attorneys argued contaminated the talc in Johnson & Johnson’s products.
The 13 day trial, jurors heard as Carley’s legal team laid out their case against Carley. They claimed that Johnson & Johnson deliberately sold and promoted talc-based products, despite knowing that the products were at risk of asbestos contamination. They emphasized that Carley’s family was never informed about the risks associated with using the baby powder on their child.
In defense of the company’s practices, Erik Haas, the worldwide vice president of litigation for Johnson & Johnson, stated that the company’s baby powder is safe and does not contain asbestos. Haas further claimed that there is no causal connection between the product’s use and the development of cancer.
“These lawsuits are predicated on ‘junk science,’ refuted by decades of studies that demonstrate Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder is safe, does not contain asbestos and does not cause cancer.” – Erik Haas
Carley’s case is not an isolated incident. A Los Angeles jury just awarded $40 million to two women who said that the same talc powder gave them ovarian cancer. In another, unrelated case, a different California jury awarded the family of a woman who succumbed to mesothelioma caused by the powder $966 million from Johnson & Johnson.
In 2020, Johnson & Johnson withdrew its talcum powder from U.S. markets. This decision became necessary as legal challenges mounted, connecting their products to diseases like ovarian cancer and mesothelioma. The company has since been engaged in a multi-year legal struggle fighting these claims. These developments have raised grave concerns about the safety of talc-based products.
Carley’s lawyer, Ben Braly, made it clear that this case was not just about money.
“This case was not about compensation only. It was about truth and accountability,” – Ben Braly
The jury’s verdict is a resounding victory for Carley. This outcome underscores the highly contentious and litigative environment that Johnson & Johnson has entered with its talc containing products and their alleged cancer causing effects. The case underscores the growing importance of consumer protection and corporate accountability in product advertising and distribution today.
