Plaintiff Lawyers Want To Consolidate Plaintiffs In Talcum Powder Cancer Trials
Johnson & Johnson continues to try and avoid what it calls a punitive damage lottery
Tuesday, August 22, 2023 - Lawyers for about 60,000 current talcum powder cancer plaintiffs now look to move forward with trials but with a twist... they want to consolidate two or more plaintiffs per trial to speed up the resolutions of the claims for both their clients and also for Johnson & Johnson. Lawyers say that "Circumstances Have Changed" according to a recent piece in Law.com. See: 'Circumstances Have Changed': Lawyers Pitch Consolidated Talc Trials Against J&J Lead attorneys in the talc multi-district litigation, vowing to "proceed with alacrity," already have proposed a bellwether trial plan, which Johnson & Johnson opposed this week." Daubert hearings concluded in 2020 and expert scientific witnesses for both sides have already been chosen. Johnson & Johnson has placed $8.9 billion into LTL management as a settlement offer to pay all past, present, and future claims. Lumping plaintiffs with similar injuries and circumstances has already been tried and has been successful. In October of 2020, " Johnson & Johnson has agreed to pay more than $100 million to resolve over 1,000 lawsuits blaming its baby powder for causing cancer, in the first set of major settlements in four years of litigation, people with knowledge of the pacts said," according to Bloomberg. In another case of multiple plaintiffs, 22 women won a record $4.89 billion jury award which was upheld on appeal but reduced to $2.1 billion.
Johnson & Johnson's second attempt to evade liability for causing talcum powder cancer has recently fallen flat. The health care conglomerate has failed twice to protect themselves from billions of dollars in liabilities by placing the talcum powder lawsuits against them into a shell company (LTL Management) and then applying for bankruptcy protection. Bankruptcy protection was twice denied on the grounds that the company did not meet the basic requirements of being in immediate financial distress at the time of filing. As a result, pending court cases are now set to regain momentum. A pivotal case considered a benchmark for others, reached a conclusion last month. The plaintiff, in this case, was grappling with the severe condition of pulmonary mesothelioma, a particularly fatal form of cancer. The court ruled in favor of the plaintiff, awarding him a substantial $18.9 million as compensatory damages. However, this is just the tip of the iceberg. The anticipation now centers on the impending decision regarding punitive damages, which has the potential to soar up to ten times the awarded compensatory amount. This landmark case is poised to significantly influence the trajectory of similar legal proceedings. It serves as a reminder to hold Johnson & Johnson accountable for its reprehensible corporate behavior in failing to warn consumers that asbestos lurked in their talcum powder. The outcome of this bellwether case sets the stage for reevaluating how companies address and rectify such concerns, making this a critical juncture for people with talcum powder cancer and the survivors of those who have died from the disease.
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