J&J Hit With Yet Another Lawsuit Related to Talcum Powder and Possible Ovarian Cancer Link
The estate of Patricia Agresta has sued Johnson & Johnson claiming the Connecticut woman's use of the company's talcum powder led to her cancer and ultimate death
November 06, 2017 at 04:04 PM
3 minute read
A Connecticut lawsuit has been filed against Johnson & Johnson alleging a link between baby powder and ovarian cancer, in the wake of two recent court victories for the company.
Two multimillion-dollar verdicts against Johnson & Johnson were recently overturned, but attorneys for the estate of Patricia Agresta say their case will move forward.
In the latest lawsuit filed Friday in U.S. District Court in Connecticut, attorneys for the estate maintain that more than 50 years of use of the powder by Agresta led to her ovarian cancer diagnosis in June 2011. She died from the disease two years ago.
Carmen Scott, the estate's attorney, said she believes recent victories for Johnson & Johnson in California and Missouri will not impede the current complaint, which is expected to be transferred to the multidistrict litigation panel at the U.S. District Court in Trenton, New Jersey.
“Those reversals will not mean a dismissal down the road in our case,” said Scott, one of several attorneys representing the Agresta estate. “We will be presenting different evidence from the ones filed in other courts, and I feel very confident in our case.”
In October, a California judge tossed a $417 million talc verdict, citing “serious misconduct” on the part of the jury and insufficient evidence at trial. Also in October, a Missouri appeals court reversed a $72 million talcum powder verdict, citing a U.S. Supreme Court decision that could threaten to erase additional verdicts against the company in Missouri. The Missouri Court of Appeals for the Eastern District found a Supreme Court decision in Bristol-Myers Squibb v. Superior Court required tossing the verdict, which had been issued in early 2016.
Scott, a member of Motley Rice, said her firm has filed about 100 similar cases across the country and will file several hundred more. In total, Scott told the Connecticut Law Tribune Monday, lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson number in the thousands.
Scott said it's too early to say how much money she's seeking for the Agresta estate
“We have not identified a specific number,” Scott said, “The amount requested will be based on a variety of factors that we are still developing.”
The 68-page lawsuit, like many of the lawsuits filed against the company over the years, cites studies linking the use of talcum with ovarian cancer. Among the studies cited in the latest lawsuit is a 1995 case study in Australia involving more than 1,600 women. The study found a statistically significant 27 percent increased risk in ovarian cancer for women who regularly used talc.
The lawsuit cites five counts: violation of the Product Liability Act within the Connecticut General Statutes; violation of the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act within the Connecticut General Statutes; wrongful death; loss of consortium; and survival claim. Survival claim is a federal statute that allows a decedent's estate to sue for injuries or damages suffered by the decedent immediately before they died.
Assisting Scott in the case are member Mathew Jasinski and associate Meghan Carter, both of Motley Rice.
Ernie Knewitz, media relations leader for Johnson & Johnson, did not respond to a request for comment Monday.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View All
Judge Reduces Attorneys' Award in Boston Sidewalk Settlement for Repetitive Billing
4 minute read
FDA Defends Rejection of Vape-Flavor Applications Before Sympathetic Supreme Court
Trending Stories
- 1The Pusillanimous Press
- 2Contract Lifecycle Management Company ContractPodAi Unveils Leah Drive
- 3'Great News' for Businesses? Judge Halts Transparency Mandate
- 4Consilio Announces ‘Native AI Review,’ Expanding Its Gen AI E-Discovery Offerings
- 5Federal Judge Hits US With $227,000 Sanction for Discovery Misconduct
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250
