Johnson & Johnson was reprimanded by a jury in the state of Missouri to pay $72 million because it failed to warn consumers about the risks associated with talc-based products.
The company was ordered to pay the amount to the family of Jacqueline Fox whose death "from ovarian cancer was linked to her use of the company's talc-based Baby Powder and Shower to Shower," a report from TorontoSun states. Fox's family claimed that the victim used the company's products for more or less 35 years. She died last October 2015. She was 62 years old.
A verdict states that the family of Fox is to receive $10 million in compensatory damages and $62 million in punitive damages. The verdict was given by the jurors in St. Louis, Missouri, on Monday. The family's lawyers claimed that such verdict is considered to be the first - by a U.S. jury - to award damages.
Several women from across the US have filed lawsuits against the company, claiming that they were never warned about the link of their products to ovarian cancer. There is about 1,000 cases filed in Missouri state court alone while another 200 is said to have been filed in the state of New Jersey.
According to Jese Beasley, one of the family's lawyers, Johnson & Johnson "knew as far back as the 1980s of the risk" linked to their products. However, they resorted to "lying to the public, lying to the regulatory agencies."
"It was really clear they were hiding something. All they had to do was put a warning label on," Krista Smith, the jury foreman, said.
On the other hand, Carol Goodrich, a Johnson & Johnson spokeswoman, said, "We have no higher responsibility than the health and safety of consumers and we are disappointed with the outcome of the trial. We sympathize with the plaintiff's family but firmly believe the safety of cosmetic talc is supported by decades of scientific evidence."
Johnson & Johnson's talcum powder has been available for at least 100 years in the market. However, it was only in recent years that scientists suggested the possible link between talc and ovarian cancer. Research regarding this possible finding is still ongoing.
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