Big Settlement For Talcum Powder Lawsuits Possible
After a pair of talcum powder ovarian cancer lawsuit awards netting plaintiffs a total of $127 million, the possibility of Johnson & Johnson electing to resolve the litigation with a lump sum settlement comes into view for many following the proceedings.
Monday, May 9, 2016 - The second talcum powder ovarian cancer lawsuit to receive an eight-figure award has led many to believe that Johnson & Johnson may begin to consider constructing a lump sum settlement to resolve the more than 1,000 lawsuits currently filed against the company. The Johnson & Johnson's baby powder lawsuits allege that the health care giant failed to affix a warning label to its talcum powder products to inform consumers of a link between the cosmetic substance and ovarian cancer. Plaintiffs have claimed that Johnson & Johnson had known about the link for more than a decade and decided against updating their warning labels out of fear that they would ruin the marketability of their products.
The two Johnson & Johnson's baby powder cancer lawsuit trials that have taken place before the City of St. Louis Circuit Court are the first in talcum powder litigation to be awarded damages. The first one took place in February, when plaintiff Jacqueline Fox's family was awarded $72 million as a result of her contraction of ovarian cancer and eventual death allegedly was linked to her regular use of Johnson & Johnson talcum powder products. This case was selected by talcum powder ovarian cancer lawyers representing plaintiffs in the proceedings, and therefore was expected to have a better chance at eliciting a favorable outcome in response to the claims filed against Johnson & Johnson.
The most recent talcum powder cancer lawsuit, however, was selected by the defense and was not expected to end up a $55 million loss for Johnson & Johnson. The plaintiff in this baby powder lawsuit, Gloria Ristesund, was still alive and the ovarian cancer she claimed had been caused by Johnson & Johnson talcum powder products was in remission at the time of the trial. Nevertheless, the jury found that the evidence presented by the talcum powder cancer attorneys representing Ristesund was overwhelming and awarded the plaintiff $55 million.
A third Johnson & Johnson's baby powder lawsuit trial will take place before the court beginning in September, and many following the first two trials are expecting more of the same because of the defense's inability to win the case they hand selected. If this is the case, the move for a lump sum settlement will become incredibly appealing for Johnson & Johnson. Not only is the company losing these trials, but the awards that are being given to the plaintiffs are a great deal larger than the money they'd have to payout to individual baby powder ovarian cancer lawsuits were they to strike a deal for a lump sum settlement.
Johnson & Johnson is planning on appealing the decisions found in the first two talcum powder cancer lawsuit trials before the City of St. Louis Circuit Court. Though there is a chance that the appellate courts could find in their favor, medical studies continue to be published into 2016 supporting the position that a substantial link between ovarian cancer and talcum powder exists. The time for Johnson & Johnson to cut their losses and settle with the more than 1,200 talcum powder ovarian cancer lawsuits currently pending against the company may be able to wait until after the September trial. However, if similarly-sized award is handed to the plaintiff in that case, the pressure on the company to end the steadily growing litigation regarding their talcum powder products may be great enough to force the company to resolve the lawsuits with a lump sum settlement.
OnderLaw, LLC -