Facing tens of thousands of personal injury and wrongful death claims from mesothelioma and ovarian cancer victims, Johnson & Johnson has asked a federal judge to dismiss 67,000 lawsuits alleging that use of its baby powder caused ovarian cancer. Attorneys representing the victims say that the legal maneuver is “as breathtaking as it is meritless,” calling it a desperate attempt to avoid jury trials that have repeatedly resulted in massive verdicts against the company.
Mesothelioma and Ovarian Cancer Victims’ Lawyers Call J&J Motion “Meritless”
While most mesothelioma victims are filing individual claims, thousands of ovarian cancer victims have joined a multi-district litigation group (MDL) that will be heavily affected by the outcomes of several bellweather claims. Counsel for those 67,000 victims responded forcefully to Johnson &Johnson’s motion in a June 29 filing, arguing that the company had “swung for the fences” in an attempt to avoid remand orders that could set the stage for talc trials across the country. J&J’s argument is based on the withdrawal of two specific causation experts—Dr. Daniel Clarke-Pearson and Dr. Judith Wolf—after a hearing before special master retired U.S. District Judge Freda Wolfson.
Though J&J claimed those withdrawn experts “radically changed their specific causation opinions,” lawyers for the ovarian cancer claimants disputed J&J’s characterization entirely, and noted that judges in mesothelioma and talc cases in California, Florida, Georgia, and Pennsylvania have allowed the same experts to testify at trial. “J&J wants this court to dismiss an entire MDL on the flawed theory that the existence of competing risk factors makes specific causation scientifically impossible,” they wrote. “The science, the law, and the record all foreclose that result.” They also indicated the two experts could be reinstated.
Mesothelioma and Ovarian Cancer Juries Have Repeatedly Sided with Talc Victims
J&J’s motion to dismiss all 67,000 ovarian cancer cases comes despite a trial record that has consistently favored victims when cases reach juries. In the past year alone, juries have awarded a $1.5 billion verdict in Baltimore, a $966 million verdict in Los Angeles later reduced to $16 million, a $40 million ovarian cancer verdict in Los Angeles, a $32 million mesothelioma verdict in Los Angeles, and a $65.5 million mesothelioma verdict in Minnesota—all finding that J&J’s talc products were a substantial factor in causing the plaintiffs’ cancers.
J&J’s motion is the latest in its continuing campaign to delegitimize plaintiffs’ experts’ testimony in the mesothelioma and ovarian cancer talc litigation. The company has previously filed lawsuits, subpoenas, and public accusations of “junk science” against scientists who have testified about asbestos in its talc. Earlier this year, Judge Wolfson had recommended that all 39 experts in the talc MDL could testify, though she did recommend that some methods used by one general causation expert be struck.
If you or someone you love has been diagnosed with mesothelioma or ovarian cancer and you suspect that talc may have played a role, the Patient Advocates can help. Contact us today at 1-800-692-8608 to learn more.
