For years, asbestos companies have countered mesothelioma lawsuits by arguing against the science: They claim there is no proof of causation and quibble over methods and statistics instead of taking responsibility for their negligence. Most recently, Johnson & Johnson filed suit against a scientist whose study linked talc-based consumer products to cancer, but last week a federal judge dismissed the company’s case, concluding that the researcher was protected by free speech rights and that there was no proof that her conclusions were “verifiably false.”
Johnson & Johnson’s Case Against Mesothelioma Researcher Dismissed
Johnson & Johnson has been under fire regarding its talc-based baby powder, which has been blamed for over 61,000 cases of ovarian cancer or malignant mesothelioma. The company’s responses to the pending lawsuits have ranged from creating a subsidiary to hold their asbestos liabilities and then having that subsidiary file for bankruptcy, to attacking the researcher whose research linked their product and cancer.
While mesothelioma victims have presented internal Johnson & Johnson documents detailing concerns over their talc’s link to cancer, the company countered by suing four researchers, attacking scientific studies, and claiming that noted occupational medicine expert Dr. Jacqueline Moline engaged in fraud, libel, or false advertising when she published a paper that linked asbestos-contaminated talcum powder products to mesothelioma.
Judge Notes Faults in J&J’s Case Against Mesothelioma Expert
In dismissing the case against the mesothelioma expert, New York federal judge Georgette Castner noted that Dr. Moline had presented her research as “tentative scientific conclusions” rather than statements of fact and that Johnson & Johnson had failed to identify a “verifiably false statement” in her study.
In response to Johnson & Johnson’s assertions that Dr. Moline had “made a career” being an expert witness in asbestos cases, the judge said that the doctor had disclosed her work as a litigation expert within her research, and also had indicated that the data she’d relied upon had come from talc lawsuit evidence.
There is a world of experts and professionals who are dedicated to revealing the truth about mesothelioma and asbestos. For access to these resources, contact the Patient Advocates at Mesothelioma.net today at 1-800-692-8608.
