J & J Dodges Verdict in Mesothelioma Trial, Imerys Settles

Johnson & Johnson’s latest trial over claims its iconic baby powder causes mesothelioma ended in mistrial this week after a California jury couldn’t reach a decision in the case of school counselor Carolyn Weirick. Lawyers for Weirick asked jurors for $25 million in compensation for past and future pain and suffering related to her mesothelioma, a rare cancer linked to asbestos exposure. Weirick, 59, was diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2017 and said her only exposure to asbestos came from the use of J&J’s talc-based products for more than 40 years. A state judge in Pasadena, California, declared a mistrial Monday after jurors left a week’s worth of deliberations deadlocked on a verdict. “After five or six days of deliberations following weeks of hearing evidence, the jury still found that the plaintiffs couldn’t carry their burden of proof on the very fundamental question of whether Johnson & Johnson had acted negligently, which I think fits with the fact that people have been using Johnson & Johnson baby powder for over a century with no problem,” Christopher Vejnoska, one of J&J’s lawyers said after the declared mistrial. Talc Supplier Settles Before Mistrial Just before deliberations began, Imerys SA, which supplies talc to Johnson & Johnson, agreed to settle its part of Weirick’s case for an undisclosed amount. In July, Imerys decided to settle before a St. Louis jury ordered J&J to pay $4.69 billion in damages to 22 women ...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Source Type: news