A second jury in the City of St. Louis Circuit Court found Johnson & Johnson liable for injuries resulting from the use of its talc-containing products such as Johnson’s Baby Powder and Shower to Shower body powder for feminine hygiene. The jury awarded Plaintiff Gloria Ristesund $55 million after agreeing the products contributed to the development of her ovarian cancer. The verdict includes $5 million in actual damages and $50 million in punitive damages.
Ms. Ristesund, 62, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2011, after using Johnson’s Baby Powder and Shower to Shower for feminine hygiene for more than 40 years.
“This second jury verdict affirms that Johnson & Johnson knew that its talcum powder products posed a risk to women’s health, but they did nothing to warn the public,” said Beasley Allen lawyer Ted Meadows, who has been on the forefront of this litigation. “There are safer alternatives made with cornstarch, which Johnson & Johnson also sells. There really was no reason for them to leave this product on the market. At the very least, they could have added a warning label to alert women to the risk of ovarian cancer. This verdict sends a message that the public is tired of corporations placing their profits over our health and trust.”
In February, another City of St. Louis Circuit Court jury awarded the family of Plaintiff Jacqueline Fox $72 million after agreeing the products contributed to the development of her ovarian cancer. That verdict included $10 million in actual damages and $62 million in punitive damages.
An estimated 20,000 women are diagnosed each year with ovarian cancer, and more than 14,000 die. The disease strikes about one in 70 women, though studies show that women who use talc-containing products on their genitals have a one in 50 chance of developing the disease. An expert at trial testified at least 45,000 women have died as a result of ovarian cancer that could be attributed to talcum powder use on the genitals, and estimated 1,500 women will die within the next year as a result of talc use.
Documents shown to the jury during the trial indicated that Johnson & Johnson’s own experts advised the company that numerous scientific studies supported a link between genital use of talcum powder and increased risk of ovarian cancer. In a letter dated in 1997, Dr. Alfred Wehner warns a J&J executive that anyone who continued to deny the evidence presented by these studies “…will be perceived by the public like it perceives the cigarette industry: denying the obvious in the face of all evidence to the contrary.”
Plaintiffs were represented by Ted G. Meadows, David P. Dearing, Brittany Scott and Ryan Beattie from Beasley Allen, along with R. Allen Smith, Jr., of The Smith Law Firm from Ridgeland, Miss., and Stephanie Rados, James G. Onder and W. Wylie Blair of the St. Louis firm Onder, Shelton, O’Leary & Peterson, LLC.
Join The Fight!
Let your voice be heard, and sign the petition to ask Johnson & Johnson to release the internal documents revealing the link between talcum powder and cancer. A St. Louis jury has seen the evidence, which ultimately led them to award a $72 million verdict. Hundreds have signed, but we need thousands – tens of thousands – of signatures to get the industry’s attention. So, please take a brief moment and do something that can change lives forever. Please sign and share the petition with your friends and colleagues, and say to J&J, #TellTheTalcTruth!
https://www.change.org/p/alex-gorsky-johnson-johnson-tell-the-talc-truth
Legal Documents
- Read the complaint.
- J & J Talc trial – Exhibit P-10
- J & J Talc trial – Exhibit P-15
- J & J Talc trial – Exhibit P-16
- J & J Talc trial – Pltf Exhibit 17
- J & J Talc trial – Pltf Exhibit 19
- J & J Talc trial – Exhibit P-20
- J & J Talc trial – Pltf Exhibit 21
- J & J Talc trial – Pltf Exhibit 22
- J & J Talc trial – P-26 Redacted
- J & J talc trial – P-32
- J & J Talc trial – P-115
- J & J Talc trial – P-341
Related News
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- Bloomberg – J&J Faces 1000 More Talc-Cancer Suits After Verdict Loss
- CNBC – Johnson & Johnson hit with $55 million verdict in talc-powder trial
- CVN – Johnson & Johnson Rocked By $55M Verdict In Talcum Powder Cancer Trial
- Fortune – Johnson & Johnson Just Lost Another Huge Talc-Powder Case
- Reuters – Johnson & Johnson ordered to pay $55 million in talc-powder trial
- National Law Journal – J&J Hit With $55M Verdict in Another Big Loss over Talcum Powder
