Effects hope to settle objections from about 60,000 applicants and fund a trust set up in a US bankruptcy court in Trenton, New Jersey, to envelop future claims, the company said Tuesday in a securities filing. J&J has already unsociable its talc-based baby powder and others, including Shower to Shower, from the market.
J&J’s LTL Management unit discriminates a new Chapter 11 case to provide a basis for the trust, which outlines terms for settling the decade-long litigation. An earlier filing, which didn’t comprise a deal, was rejected in January after an appeals court found J&J erred in using bankruptcy to block the board from rallying lawsuits and handing out damage awards.
J&J wants a reconstitution plan for LTL that caps all the talc liability.
“Resolving this matter through the begin reorganization plan is both more impartial and more efficient, allows claimants to be repaid in a timely manner,” Erik Haas, J&J’s worldwide distinguished head of litigation, said in a release. Monies in the deal will be paid out over 25 years.
Shares of J&J rose as much as 3% in the deal after US markets closed.
If enough victims agree to join the accord, J&J will be freed from defending against cancer claims tied to baby powder and others products pollute by asbestos. Juries ruled against the company in almost a dozen such suits over the years — including one plead all the way to the US Supreme Court — before J&J was enforced to pay $2.5 billion to a group of 20 women whose occasion
went to trial in 2018.
Johnson & Johnson, one of the world’s largest healthcare companies, has agreed to pay $8.9 billion to settle thousands of lawsuits alleging that its talc-based products, including baby powder, caused cancer. The settlement marks the end of a long and contentious legal battle that has been going on for several years, and it is one of the largest in U.S. history to demand a single product.
The lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson claimed that its talc-based products contained asbestos, a known carcinogen and that they caused ovarian cancer or mesothelioma in thousands of people. The company has consistently denied any wrongdoing and maintained that its products were safe and asbestos-free. However, the mounting legal costs and uncertainties of litigation led the company to agree to the settlement.
The settlement resolves more than 100,000 lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson, making it one of the largest mass tort settlements in U.S. history. The majority of the cases were consolidated in a federal court in New Jersey, but there were also cases pending in state courts across the country. The settlement covers both current and future claims, meaning that people who develop cancer in the future as a result of using Johnson & Johnson’s talc-based products can still file a claim.
Under the terms of the settlement, Johnson & Johnson will pay $8.9 billion over several years. The money will be used to compensate the plaintiffs who filed the lawsuits and their families. The amount of money each plaintiff will receive will depend on several factors, including the severity of their illness and the extent of their exposure to the talc products. Some estimates suggest that individual payouts could range from a few thousand dollars to several million dollars.
In addition to the financial settlement, Johnson & Johnson has also agreed to stop selling talc-based baby powder in the United States and Canada. The company maintains that its talc-based products are safe, but it decided to discontinue the product in those countries due to changing consumer preferences and misinformation about the safety of the product. Johnson & Johnson will continue to sell the talc-based baby powder in other countries, where it remains a popular product.
The settlement is not without controversy, however.
Some critics argue that the settlement does not go far enough to hold Johnson & Johnson accountable for its actions. They point out that the company has faced similar lawsuits and settlements in the past related to other products, such as opioids and hip implants. They also note that Johnson & Johnson has faced criticism for its handling of the talc issue, including allegations that it knew about the risks associated with talc-based products but failed to warn consumers.
Despite these criticisms, the settlement is a significant development in the ongoing legal battle over Johnson & Johnson’s talc-based products.
It provides some measure of closure for the thousands of people who have been affected by these products and compensates them for their suffering. It also sends a message to other companies that they will be held accountable if their products are found to be harmful to consumers.
In conclusion, Johnson & Johnson’s decision to pay $8.9 billion to settle thousands of lawsuits related to its talc-based products is a significant development in the ongoing legal battle over the safety of these products. While the settlement does not resolve all of the controversies surrounding the issue, it provides some measure of closure for the plaintiffs and their families and compensates them for their suffering. It also serves as a reminder that companies must take responsibility for the safety of their products and be held accountable if they cause harm to consumers.
