Johnson & Johnson reaches $700 million settlement in talc case

U.S. pharmaceutical and cosmetics giant Johnson & Johnson has agreed to pay $700 million to resolve allegations that it misled customers about the safety of its talcum powder products, New York's attorney general announced Tuesday.

In its settlement with 42 states and the District of Columbia, Johnson & Johnson did not admit any wrongdoing, despite withdrawing the product from the North American market in 2020.

The New Jersey-based company announced a settlement in principle in January after facing thousands of lawsuits over talcum powder containing traces of asbestos, which was blamed for causing ovarian cancer.

“No amount of money can undo the pain caused by Johnson & Johnson's talc products, but today families can rest assured that the company is being held accountable for the harm it caused,” said New York Attorney General Letitia James, in a statement.

The state of New York will receive $44 million of the settlement amount, which must be paid in four installments over three years.

In a statement to AFP, Johnson & Johnson's global vice president of litigation, Erik Haas, said the company “continues to pursue various avenues to achieve a complete and final resolution of the talc litigation.”

The process “includes the completion of a previously announced agreement the Company reached with a consortium of 43 State Attorneys General to resolve its talc claims.”

In April 2023, the group proposed an $8.9 billion settlement that would “equitably and efficiently resolve all claims arising from cosmetic talc litigation.”

J&J said the money would be paid to tens of thousands of claimants over 25 years through a subsidiary, LTL Management LLC, which was created to address the claims and filed for bankruptcy.

However, a bankruptcy judge rejected the deal.

“We will continue to address claims from those who do not want to participate in our consensual bankruptcy resolution contemplated through litigation or settlement,” Haas added in its statement Tuesday.

A summary of studies published in January 2020 and covering 250,000 women in the United States found no statistical link between the use of talcum powder on the genitals and the risk of ovarian cancer.