Johnson & Johnson Must Pay $18.8 Million to California Cancer Patient in Baby Powder Suit

On Tuesday, a California jury decided that Johnson & Johnson (J&J) must pay $18.8 million to Emory Hernandez Valadez, a 24-year-old man who claimed to have developed cancer from exposure to the company’s baby powder. The ruling comes as a significant setback for J&J, as it attempts to resolve numerous similar cases over its talc-based products in US bankruptcy court.

Emory Hernandez Valadez filed the lawsuit last year in California state court in Oakland, seeking monetary damages after developing mesothelioma, a deadly cancer affecting the tissue around his heart. He attributes the cancer to heavy exposure to J&J’s talc since childhood.

During the six-week trial, the first over talc that J&J has faced in almost two years, the jury ruled in favour of Hernandez. While they awarded him damages to cover medical bills and pain and suffering, they declined to impose punitive damages against the company.

However, Hernandez will likely face challenges in collecting the judgment as most litigation over J&J’s talc is currently frozen due to a bankruptcy court order. J&J’s subsidiary, LTL Management, filed for bankruptcy in April, proposing to settle over 38,000 lawsuits and prevent new cases by paying $8.9 billion.

In response to the verdict, J&J’s vice president of litigation, Erik Haas, announced that the company would appeal, asserting that the jury’s decision contradicts decades of independent scientific evaluations confirming the safety of Johnson’s Baby Powder.

Hernandez’s lawyers had accused J&J of a decades-long coverup of asbestos contamination, while J&J’s attorneys argued that there was no evidence linking Hernandez’s mesothelioma to asbestos exposure.

Tens of thousands of plaintiffs have sued J&J, claiming that their baby powder and talc products contain asbestos and have led to ovarian cancer and mesothelioma. Despite the lawsuits, J&J maintains that their talc products are asbestos-free and safe.

The bankruptcy proceedings have halted most litigation, but Hernandez’s trial was allowed to proceed because he is expected to live only a short time. His case is unusual as his form of mesothelioma is extremely rare, setting it apart from the majority of pending cases against J&J.

Asbestos plaintiffs are seeking to have LTL’s latest bankruptcy filing dismissed, arguing that it was brought in bad faith to shield the company from litigation. J&J and LTL have contended that bankruptcy delivers fairer and more equitable settlement payouts to plaintiffs compared to trial courts, where outcomes can vary significantly. So far, J&J has incurred costs of approximately $4.5 billion in talc-related verdicts, settlements, and legal fees, according to their bankruptcy court filings.