Women With Ovarian Cancer Think Johnson & Johnson Was Hoping They Would Just Die Or Get Frustrated And Go Away
Johnson & Johnson is accused of playing a waiting game just to reduce the number of talcum powder lawsuits against them
Wednesday, February 8, 2023 - Overturning a New Jersey bankruptcy court decision enables ovarian cancer trials to restart soon. Women with talcum powder cancer are happy that their day in court may be just around the corner after their talcum powder cancer lawsuits are no longer on hold. Johnson & Johnson deployed the controversial Texas Two-Step bankruptcy plan last year that would have put an end to about 38,000 lawsuits the conglomerate faces. Johnson & Johnson created a shell company called LTL management and immediately filed for bankruptcy which New Jersey bankruptcy judge Michael Kaplan approved. Many think that the legal maneuver was to shelter the company’s war chest of around $400 billion rather than to protect creditors of a struggling company. Plaintiff attorneys and others filed an appeal that was expeditiously processed to overturn the decision to allow the bankruptcy to go forth. Plaintiffs allege the company failed to warn consumers that the talc in their iconic Johnson's Baby Powder may contain asbestos and cause ovarian cancer if used on the peritoneal regions of the body, or mesothelioma if inhaled. NBC News reports about the reactions several women with cancer had when they heard the news that their lawsuits were back on. Johnson & Johnson effectively postponed the lawsuits for about 15 months while 3 appeals court judges reviewed the case.
One woman told NBC that she thought Johnson & Johnson was playing a waiting game just to see how many would die or get frustrated and give up. Plaintiff Deborah Smith told NBC, "By that time, more than two years had passed since Smith filed her suit. The news of the Two-Step, she said, felt like "a slap in the face. If that was someone in their family, would they drag it out like that?" Smith said. "It's almost like they're playing a waiting game to see how many people will just die or just give up fighting." Smith's cancer is in remission. Talcum powder cancer plaintiffs are seeking reimbursement for lost income, medical expenses, pain and suffering, and large punitive damages awards for the anguish the company has put them through. Lottery-like punitive damages were the driving force behind the company's desperate attempt at bankruptcy after the US Supreme Court failed to hear a case that awarded 22 women with ovarian cancer $4.1 billion. A Missouri appeals court failed to overturn the verdict calling the company's corporate behavior in hiding their knowledge of the dangers lurking in talcum powder "reprehensible." Plaintiff Mary Ann Bingherien who used Johnson's Baby Powder and Shower to Shower body wash for feminine hygiene and developed ovarian cancer allegedly as a result told the News that she fears now for the health of her children. "Bingheri said she now fears that her two daughters, ages 37 and 48, could also be at higher risk for cancer since she used the powder on them as babies. For asbestos-related diseases, the time between exposure and symptoms can range from around 10 to 50 years."Johnson & Johnson hoped that their bankruptcy filing would help all 38,000 plaintiffs to get a fair settlement within a reasonable amount of time. A spokesperson for J & J told NBC, "addressing each and every one of the talc cases on an individual basis could take thousands of years."
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