A Los Angeles jury has ordered Johnson & Johnson (J&J) to pay $966 million to the family of Mae Moore, an 88-year-old California woman who died of mesothelioma in 2021, after finding that the company’s talc-based baby powder contributed to her death.
According to court filings, the jury awarded $16 million in compensatory damages and $950 million in punitive damages — one of the largest verdicts in recent years involving J&J’s talc products.
Moore’s family filed the lawsuit in 2021, claiming that asbestos fibers in the company’s baby powder caused her rare cancer. Mesothelioma is a disease strongly associated with asbestos exposure.
J&J’s worldwide vice president of litigation, Erik Haas, said the company will “immediately appeal,” describing the verdict as “egregious and unconstitutional.” He accused the plaintiff’s lawyers of relying on “junk science” that should not have been presented to the jury.
The pharmaceutical giant maintains that its talc products are safe, asbestos-free, and do not cause cancer. J&J stopped selling its talc-based baby powder in the U.S. in 2020, replacing it with a cornstarch alternative.
Attorney Trey Branham, who represented Moore’s family, said after the verdict that his team is “hopeful that Johnson & Johnson will finally accept responsibility for these senseless deaths.”
The company faces more than 67,000 lawsuits from plaintiffs who claim they developed cancer after using J&J talc products. While most cases involve ovarian cancer, a smaller number allege links to mesothelioma.
J&J has tried to resolve the litigation through bankruptcy proceedings, though federal courts have repeatedly rejected its proposals. Recent months have seen a mix of verdicts in state courts — some favoring the company and others, like Moore’s case, resulting in massive damages awards.
