Talc, the main ingredient in talcum powder, is a naturally occurring mineral. It’s often found alongside asbestos in the earth, which can lead to asbestos contamination in talc. This makes even small amounts of talcum powder dangerous. Consumers are unable to detect asbestos in talcum powder; they must rely on proper testing and transparency from companies to know they are using a safe product.
Like talc, asbestos is naturally occurring, but is classified as a known carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and the US National Toxicology Program (NTP). When asbestos enters the body, it can cause scarring and inflammation, which can eventually lead to cancer. Even in very small amounts and with very limited exposure, some people develop cancer from asbestos.
Because it can be dangerous in small amounts, no level of asbestos exposure is safe. When inhaled, it can cause a type of cancer called mesothelioma. While there are some mesothelioma lawsuits related to talcum powder asbestos, there are many more lawsuits related to ovarian cancer. In recent lawsuits, Johnson & Johnson has been accused of marketing baby powder to women for decades, all the while knowing it contained dangerous talcum powder that was often contaminated with asbestos.
According to the American Cancer Society "21,750 women will be diagnosed with Ovarian Cancer in 2020". It was found that half of the women that are diagnosed in the US are over the age of 63 years.
Johnson & Johnson had dropped a few hints about its knowledge of the dangerous talc side effects and possible asbestos contamination in courts for several decades. After a recent investigation, the company was forced to recall 33,000 bottles of baby powder due to asbestos contamination in 2019 until they finally stopped selling talcum powder in American and Canadian markets in May 2020
As of June 2020, there are more than 19,000 open cases of talc and ovarian cancer link that are pending against the company. The talc settlement amounts and the payout for women can be as high as 2.1 billions dollars like the recent ruling of the Missouri Court of Appeal to 22 women. This the next step after a Missouri jury awarded in July 2018, $550 million to and a further $4.1 billion in punitive damages.
Although many people are curious as to how much settlements are for talcum powder lawsuits it is impossible to give exact numbers. However there are have been some recent Johnson and Johnson settlement amounts for talcum powder lawsuits that have been made public and this can help people understand the range they may be given.
- October 2020 - Johnson and Johnson agreed to pay more than $100 million to settle over 1,000 lawsuits stating that the company’s baby powder causes cancer. This marks the first time the company has settled a bulk of cases and not individual suits
- June 2020 - an appellate court in Missouri upheld more than $2 billion in damages against Johnson & Johnson, saying the company knew there was asbestos in its baby powder
- May 2020 - Johnson & Johnson announced it would end the sale of talc-based baby powder in North America. Despite this, however, sales of the product would continue in the UK and the rest of the world
- January 2020 - News emerged of J&J settling a case for over $2 million in Oakland, California. The payout, which was awarded to an Irish woman who had claimed to develop cancer after using asbestos-tainted baby powder, is one of the rare cases were J&J has decided to settle.
Johnson and Johnson isn’t the only company to make talcum powder, but they are the reason many people have filed a talcum powder ovarian cancer lawsuit. For decades, they sold and marketed their talcum powder products, primarily to women. Thousands of those women who used J &J talcum powder on their genital area later developed ovarian cancer.
In 2018, a judge released internal documents from Johnson & Johnson that revealed the company was aware that their talcum powder sometimes contained asbestos. Their talc tested positive for asbestos numerous times between 1971 and 2003, yet they didn’t make this information public, and they continued to market to women.
In the 1980’s, consumers began to put Johnson & Johnson under pressure to issue a warning about the potential for asbestos contamination in their talcum baby powder. However, the level of possible contamination was said to be too low, and the FDA did not require Johnson and Johnson to issue a warning.
It wasn’t until 2006 that the World Health Organization classified talcum powder as a possible carcinogen when used in the genital area. For years consumers and activists fought for the FDA to require Johnson & Johnson to put warning labels on their talcum powder, but they were unsuccessful.
Only this year did the company finally act and it removed their Talcum Based Bay Powder from the North American Market.
Thousands of people have filed lawsuits against Johnson and Johnson because:
- They knowingly sold a defective product that contained asbestos.
- They knew their talcum powder contained asbestos, which is a known carcinogen.
- They failed to warn members of the medical community as well as the general public that their product was defective.
- Not only did they sell this defective product, but they clearly marketed it to women, convincing them they needed the product.
- According to a special report from Reuters, Johnson & Johnson marketed talcum powder specifically to African American and overweight women even after the World Health Organization (WHO) classified it as possibly carcinogenic.
Johnson and Johnson was deliberately deceptive about their talcum powder products. This has led to many people seeking justice for harm that may have come to them or a loved one due to the company’s deception.
Companies like Johnson & Johnson generally have vast resources to spend on defending itself, so if you are looking for a talcum lawyer to discuss your case, you should ensure that you hire an expert lawyer from an established legal firm.
It is highly important to do history check for similar cases and a solid success rate in previous cases in medical litigation. We can help you sign on a contingency agreement so you will not have to pay any out of pocket money during all the process.
You will have to pay ONLY if you get compensation and the payment will be a percentage of your compensation payment. This is a No-Risk action and many women choose it. Good Luck.
Companies like Johnson & Johnson generally have vast resources to spend on defending itself, so if you are looking for a lawyer to discuss your case, you should ensure that you hire one that has experience trying similar cases and cases of similar magnitude. In addition, any lawyer you hire should have a solid success rate in previous cases and expertise in medical litigation. Select Justice can help you find lawyers that best suit your specific needs of this case.
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