For the third time this year, a St. Louis, Missouri jury found Johnson & Johnson liable in a case where plaintiff alleged that her ovarian cancer was caused by her use of talcum powder products. At trial, Deborah Giannecchini, a 62 year-old California woman, claimed that her decades-long use of Johnson & Johnson talcum powder caused her to develop ovarian cancer in 2013. After a month-long trial, the jury awarded her more than $70 million in damages, approximately $65 million of which were comprised of punitive damages.
At trial, Giannecchini’s lawyers argued that Johnson & Johnson: (1) was aware for more than 30 years that use of talc-based products increases the risk of ovarian cancer; and (2) did not warn the public of the potential health hazards associated with the product.
In the two prior St. Louis cases which reached a verdict against Johnson & Johnson, juries found in favor of plaintiffs and awarded $72 million and $55 million, respectively, in damages. While Johnson & Johnson has seen limited success before juries, the company hopes that each of the three St. Louis verdicts will be overturned on appeal. Specifically, Johnson & Johnson’s appellate arguments will focus on the lack of scientific proof to support the recent jury awards. Indeed, Johnson & Johnson successfully used this approach in New Jersey, where a state court dismissed two talc-based actions after ruling that plaintiffs’ scientific experts were unable to provide sufficient evidence that the use of talcum powder causes ovarian cancer.
Johnson & Johnson is currently defending more than 1,500 cases nationwide. In each of these cases, plaintiffs allege that the company failed to warn consumers of the potential health risks associated with the use of talc products.