In what’s being seen as a victory for mesothelioma and ovarian cancer victims seeking justice, consumer giant Johnson & Johnson’s second attempt at putting its talc litigation subsidiary into bankruptcy has failed. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Michael Kaplan again rejected the company’s petition, noting that the company had failed to show that outstanding talc litigation had created the level of financial distress that would have warranted such legal action.
Second Bankruptcy Filing Represents Continued Attempt to Evade Mesothelioma Litigation
Facing tens of thousands of negligence lawsuits accusing its talc powder product of causing malignant mesothelioma and ovarian cancer, Johnson & Johnson created a subsidiary called LTL Management. They then filed for bankruptcy protection for the subsidiary, hoping to avoid having to pay billions of dollars to those seeking compensation via personal injury litigation. This approach took advantage of a controversial legal strategy known as a Texas Two-Step, and though their filing was initially accepted by the bankruptcy court, a U.S. appeals court reversed that decision, noting that bankruptcy protection was only appropriate when a company was in significant financial distress.
The company then returned with a second bankruptcy filing accompanied by a settlement offer of $8.9 billion to be paid to mesothelioma victims. Though some attorneys representing asbestos plaintiffs supported this argument, many more argued against the move, calling it an abuse of bankruptcy law that both forced asbestos victims to agree to insufficient terms and prevented those who may be diagnosed with cancer in the future from being able to pursue justice.
Johnson & Johnson Says Mesothelioma and Cancer Claims “Lack Scientific Merit”
Despite studies linking exposure to talc with malignant mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases, Johnson & Johnson continues to argue against their product having caused the plaintiffs’ illnesses. They argue that their product is safe and does not contain cancer, but recently discontinued all of their talc-based products.
Speaking on behalf of many of the mesothelioma and ovarian cancer victims with outstanding claims, one attorney said, “J&J has spent two years trying to convince us that somehow a company worth a half-trillion dollars is bankrupt. It’s time for the nonsense to stop and for J&J to accept responsibility.”
If you or someone you love has been diagnosed with an asbestos-related cancer and you believe it was caused by exposure to a talc product, the Patient Advocates at Mesothelioma.net can help. Contact us today at 1-800-692-8608.
