How Much Are Settlements for Talcum Powder?

Produce liability law refers to a practice that holds manufacturers and retailers accountable for developing and selling defective products that harm consumers. The standard product liability case includes a request for just compensation that covers both economic and non-economic damages. A plaintiff files a civil lawsuit alleging the manufacturer and retailer developed and sold a product that caused physical and mental harm. In the case of the Johnson & Johnson talcum powder lawsuits, plaintiffs allege the company’s line of talcum powders have caused mesothelioma and ovarian cancer.

The key for a product liability attorney is to demonstrate the defendant violated one or more of the legal theories that define product liability law. The answer to the question, “How much are settlements for talcum powder?” depends on which of the theories your legal counsel proves Johnson & Johnson violated.

Four primary legal theories form the foundation for product liability statutes: negligence, misrepresentation, strict liability, and breach of warranty.

Negligence

If your lawyer invokes the negligence legal theory, your legal counsel must demonstrate the existence of four elements that define negligence. First, your lawyer must prove Johnson & Johnson had a duty of care to ensure you remain healthy when using the company’s products. The second element of proving negligence requires evidence that clearly shows Johnson & Johnson breached the duty of care. Third, the breach of duty of care must have caused you harm, and finally, the harm caused by Johnson & Johnson must have produced financial losses.

Misrepresentation

Misrepresentation is an act committed by a manufacturer of a product that presents false information about the effectiveness of a product. If misrepresenting a product caused consumers harm, the manufacturer can be sued under product liability law.

Breach of Warranty

Breach of warranty represents a legal principle that refers to the failure of a manufacturer to live up to the terms of a claim or promise. Warranty claims for product liability cases are dependent on state or federal law. The Johnson & Johnson talcum powder lawsuits do not involve breach of warranty.

Strict Liability

Strict liability does not require a plaintiff to show a manufacturer is at fault for developing a defective product. This type of product liability theory is used for cases of product-related injuries in which the plaintiff cannot prove negligence, misrepresentation, and breach of warranty.

Talcum powder lawsuits represent legal action taken against manufacturer Johnson & Johnson for knowingly selling a product tainted with asbestos. The presence of a high concentration of asbestos can cause mesothelioma and ovarian cancer. Talcum powder lawsuits not only accuse Johnson & Johnson of knowingly selling a product tainted with asbestos but also doing nothing to warn consumers by recalling the company’s line of talcum powder products.

As of December 15, 2021, Johnson & Johnson faced more than 38,000 lawsuits stemming from the contamination of the company’s talcum powder products. With settlements and legal judgments exceeding $4 billion, Johnson & Johnson created a subsidiary called LTL Management LLC to separate the company’s assets from its liabilities. A vast majority of the civil lawsuits filed came from individual legal actions, not the legal action taken by a group of plaintiffs for a class action lawsuit.

On October 18, 2019, Johnson & Johnson issued a voluntary recall of one lot of its line of baby powder products. The action came shortly after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) discovered traces of asbestos contamination. Less than seven months later, Johnson & Johnson announced the cessation in the sale of its talcum powder products. The impetus behind the investigation conducted by the FDA came from a highly publicized report issued by Reuters in late 2018.

How much are settlements for talcum powder? In just one month, which was October of 2020, Johnson & Johnson had agreed to settle more than 1,000 civil lawsuits for nearly $100,000 million, which averages around $100,000 per claim.

Although Johnson & Johnson has agreed to settle many of the product liability lawsuits involving its line of baby powder, some plaintiffs have declined settlement offers and instead have pursued civil lawsuits that ended up with favorable legal judgments.

$37.2 Million Verdict

In September of 2019, a New Jersey jury awarded more than $37 in monetary damages to be split among four plaintiffs. The jury agreed with the claim submitted by the four plaintiffs that Johnson & Johnson’s baby powder and Shower-to-Shower products caused the development of mesothelioma after the plaintiffs inhaled asbestos.

$26.5 Million Verdict

A California jury awarded Christina Prudencio $26.4 million in monetary damages. The August 2021 decision included $100,000 more in punitive damages. Prudencio filed her civil lawsuit alleging the talcum products she used from Johnson & Johnson contained enough asbestos to generate cancer symptoms.

$117 Million Verdict

Stephen Lanzo III and his wife received a whopping $117 million award from a New Jersey jury in April of 2018. He claimed and the jury agreed that inhaling the asbestos discovered in Johnson & Johnson’s talcum powder and Shower-to-Shower products caused him to develop cancer. The $117 million legal judgment represents one of the largest awards for monetary damages issued against Johnson & Johnson.

Knowing how much settlements are for talcum powder involves breaking down monetary damages into three primary categories: economic, non-economic, and punitive damages.

Economic Damages

Also called special compensatory damages, economic damages cover the cost that are directly connected to inhaling the asbestos found in the line of Johnson & Johnson baby powders. Treating cancer requires a steep financial investment that health insurance does not always fully cover. Out-of-pocket expenses can run into tens of thousands of dollars. In addition to costly treatment expenses, you also have to pay for diagnostic tests, rehabilitation sessions, and the prescription drugs that mitigate the adverse reactions you have to radiation and chemotherapy treatments.

Developing mesothelioma or ovarian cancer also negatively impacts your income. The debilitating treatments make it impossible to work, as do many of the symptoms that are associated with cancer. With no income and mounting medical bills, you find yourself in financial distress. Seeking economic damages is the most important type of damages awarded by a judge or jury.

Non-Economic Damages

The shock of receiving a cancer diagnosis does much more damage than physical harm. You have to deal with a wave of negative emotions that start with fear and acute anxiety. Fear of the unknown can lead to many sleepless nights, as well as behaviors that put you in harm’s way. Non-economic damages, which do not come with a price tag like the cost of prescription drugs, include pain and suffering. The product liability attorney you work with from Morgan & Morgan calculates the value of pain and suffering by referring to a formula that includes the value of economic damages. Your product liability lawyer must present a reasonable value for non-economic damages or run the risk of denying this type of compensation.

Punitive Damages

Johnson & Johnson has paid tens of million of dollars in punitive damages because of the company’s awareness of the presence of asbestos in its line of talcum powders. Juries throughout the United States have awarded punitive damages for talcum powder lawsuits because Johnson & Johnson did nothing to correct the dangerous presence. Punitive damages do not compensate a plaintiff for suffering financial losses. Instead, punitive damages penalize the negligence committed by a defendant. Juries have ruled Johnson & Johnson should assume legal liability for knowing about the presence of asbestos, as well as not doing anything to eliminate the life-threatening toxic substance.

If you received a diagnosis for cancer and used one of the talcum powders manufactured by Johnson & Johnson, you might be eligible to receive just compensation for your illness, as well as for pain and suffering. Morgan & Morgan works with a network of healthcare professionals that help our team of product liability attorneys build strong cases. By hiring a team of product liability lawyers from Morgan & Morgan, you get the best legal support to fight back against Johnson & Johnson.

Schedule a free case evaluation today to learn more about how much settlements for talcum powder are.