Johnson & Johnson Offers $5.5bn to Settle Baby Powder Cancer Lawsuits

What the baby powder settlement covers

Under the offer, J&J would pay up to $3bn next year, with no further payments due before 2028. The proposal must first be accepted by law firms representing 95% of the ovarian cancer claims in state and federal courts before it can be finalised. The company continues to deny that its talc products cause cancer and has already reformulated its powder. Lawsuits first began in 2009, with claimants arguing the talc was contaminated with cancer-causing asbestos, echoing the scale of a major damages verdict seen in other high-profile US injury cases.

This resolution allows the company to put this matter behind it and remain focused on its mission to develop medicines and devices that save lives.

That was the message from Erik Haas, J&J’s vice-president of litigation, who branded the allegations “meritless” but said the firm was willing to settle to end the matter. Liability for baby powder sold outside North America now sits with Kenvue, the consumer-health business spun off from J&J in 2022. If enough claimants sign up, one of the longest-running product battles in US corporate history could finally be over.