J&J to pay more than US$100m to end over 1,000 talc suits

[NEW JERSEY] Johnson & Johnson has agreed to pay more than US$100 million to resolve over 1,000 lawsuits blaming its baby powder for causing cancer, in the first set of major settlements in four years of litigation, people with knowledge of the pacts said.

The accords, struck with several law firms, signal that the world's largest maker of health care products is trying to get ahead of the burgeoning litigation, with some 20,000 lawsuits still pending, according to securities filings. They mark the first time Johnson & Johnson has settled the bulk of a plaintiffs lawyer's cases in the baby powder suits, rather than individual suits on the eve of or during trial.

The deals come seven months since J&J last faced a jury reviewing evidence about the cancer risk of its signature talc product, which it maintains is safe, although it has replaced it with a cornstarch version in the US and Canada. The company used the lull, due to the pandemic, to hold settlement talks, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the matter is private.

Now that hiatus is about to end, as a trial over a factory worker's claims of mesothelioma tied to talc is scheduled to start this month in California.

"In certain circumstances, we do choose to settle lawsuits, which is done without an admission of liability and in no way changes our position regarding the safety of our products," Kim Montagnino, a J&J spokeswoman, said in an emailed statement. She said "scientific evidence" supports that position."Our talc is safe, does not contain asbestos and does not cause cancer," Ms Montagnino said.

BLOOMBERG