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J&J Talc 4/12
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CVN To Webcast 2nd J&J Talcum Powder Cancer Trial After Landmark $72M Verdict
Apr 11, 2016 | CVN
By David Siegel
The second trial in state court out of more than a thousand lawsuits claiming Johnson & Johnson products containing talcum powder can cause cancer begins Monday in Missouri, after an earlier trial ended with a ground-shaking $72 million verdict against the company, and the proceedings will be webcast gavel-to-gavel by Courtroom View Network. -
Jury Selection Begins in Second Missouri Talcum Powder Case
Apr 11, 2016 | Harris Martin Publishing
Parties involved in the second talc-based powder case to proceed to trial in St. Louis have started jury selection, sources with the court confirmed to HarrisMartin Publishing. -
Several Motions Relating to Jurisdiction Pending in Missouri Talcum Powder Suit
Apr 12, 2016 | Harris Martin Publishing
Imerys Talc America Inc. has challenged talcum powder claims pending in Missouri state court, contending that the court cannot exercise jurisdiction over Imerys simply because it has a registered agent in a nearby county and, further, that it did not mine or sell talc in Missouri. -
14 New Talc-Based Powder Lawsuits Filed in New Jersey Coordinated Docket; Case Total Now Up to 139
Apr 11, 2016 | Harris Martin Publishing
Plaintiffs have filed 14 new talc-based powder cases in New Jersey in the last three weeks, bringing the total number of cases pending in that state’s coordinated docket to 139, according to a recent published case list. -
First N.J. Talc-Based Powder Lawsuit Scheduled to Begin Jury Selection in October
Apr 11, 2016 | Harris Martin Publishing
An October trial setting has been scheduled for the first talc-based powder case to proceed to trial in New Jersey’s coordinated docket, at which time a jury will hear claims from a woman who contends that her use of Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder caused her to develop ovarian cancer at the age of 36. -
Johnson and Johnson baby powder and kids’ shampoo safe: Ministry
Apr 12, 2016 | The Peninsula Quatar
By Sidi Mohammed
DOHA: The Ministry of Municipality and Environment yesterday confirmed the safety of Johnson and Johnson baby powder and children shampoo, being sold in Qatar, saying that laboratory tests have showed that the products meet the Qatari specifications and standards. -
Qatar officials: Johnson’s baby powder is safe to use
Apr 12, 2016 | Doha News
By Shabina S. Khatri
Following an investigation into a popular baby powder brand over health concerns, Qatar’s government has declared the product safe to use.
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CVN To Webcast 2nd J&J Talcum Powder Cancer Trial After Landmark $72M Verdict
Apr 11, 2016 | CVN
By David Siegel
The second trial in state court out of more than a thousand lawsuits claiming Johnson & Johnson products containing talcum powder can cause cancer begins Monday in Missouri, after an earlier trial ended with a ground-shaking $72 million verdict against the company, and the proceedings will be webcast gavel-to-gavel by Courtroom View Network.
Plaintiff Gloria Ristesund’s lawsuit could help predict whether the historic verdict reached in February was a fluke or the start of a trend. Roughly 1000 similar cases are pending in Missouri, with another 200 in New Jersey, and with J&J claiming roughly 19 percent of the nearly $18.8 billion baby powder market in the United States the products at issue represent a major business line for the company.
Ristesund claims she used J&J’s talcum-based powder for 40 years before being diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2011. Her attorneys have argued in court filings that J&J knew for decades that talcum powder posed a serious cancer risk, but that they withheld the information from the public in order to protect sales of popular products. They claim internal company documents show J&J specifically marketed the allegedly dangerous products specifically to African-American and Hispanic women despite knowing about scientific studies dating back to the 1970’s showing talc, a soft, absorbent naturally occurring mineral, is unsafe.
Jere Beasley of the Beasley Allen Law Firm, who represents plaintiffs in the Missouri litigation, said in a statement following the first state court verdict that J&J’s decision to continue marketing talcum-powder based hygiene products was “simply outrageous.” In that case a St. Louis jury awarded Jackie Fox, who died of ovarian cancer last year, $62 million in compensatory damages and $10 million in punitive damages.
“It is hard to imagine how corporate executives could be so callous,” Beasley said in February. “But the internal company documents that were brought to light through this trial show clearly that that is exactly the case.”
J&J has denied the allegations, noting that the U.S. Food & Drug Administration held hearings in the 1990’s on the risks of talcum powder and concluded there was no link between the mineral and cancer, and that the agency stated in 2014 that there was no “conclusive evidence” of a link between talcum powder-based hygiene products and ovarian cancer. In 2013 a North Dakota federal jury found the company negligent in the first talcum powder case to go to trial but awarded the plaintiff no damages, according to court records.
A spokeswoman for J&J declined to comment until the completion of the trial.
Today cornstarch is used instead of talc in most baby powder and feminine hygiene products following a 1999 advisory from the American Cancer Society suggesting women use cornstarch-based products. While J&J has offered cornstarch-based powder since 1970, they continue to also market talcum-based products, too.
A plaintiff’s verdict in the Ristesund trial could cause the number of talc-related cases pending against J&J to explode. Following the verdict in the Fox trial, Beasley Allen told Bloomberg News that nearly 17,000 people contacted the firm about filing similar lawsuits in addition to the 5000 claims they say were already being actively investigated.
Imerys Talc America, which is J&J’s sole powder provider, was found not liable in Fox’s case and is also a defendant in the pending Ristesund trial.
The current trial before Judge Rex Burlison begins with jury selection on Monday and opening statements are expected later this week, when CVN’s webcast will begin. The next talcum powder trial in St. Louis is scheduled for September, according to court records.
The case is Ristesund v. Johnson & Johnson et al, case no. 1422-CC09012 in the Circuit Court of the City of St. Louis in Missouri.
http://blog.cvn.com/cvn-to-webcast-2nd-jj-talcum-powder-cancer-trial-after-landmark-72m-verdict
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Jury Selection Begins in Second Missouri Talcum Powder Case
Apr 11, 2016 | Harris Martin Publishing
Parties involved in the second talc-based powder case to proceed to trial in St. Louis have started jury selection, sources with the court confirmed to HarrisMartin Publishing.
According to the Missouri Circuit Court for St. Louis County’s online docket, jury selection started on April 8 in Div. 10 before Circuit Judge Rex Burlison. Sources at the court said that as of April 11, the parties were still selecting a jury.
This time, jurors will hear Gloria Ristesund’s allegations that talc-based powder products manufactured and distributed by Johnson & Johnson defendants caused the development of ovarian cancer. ...
Subscription required. Full story found at: http://harrismartin.com/article/20659/jury-selection-begins-in-second-missouri-talcum-powder-case/
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Several Motions Relating to Jurisdiction Pending in Missouri Talcum Powder Suit
Apr 12, 2016 | Harris Martin Publishing
Imerys Talc America Inc. has challenged talcum powder claims pending in Missouri state court, contending that the court cannot exercise jurisdiction over Imerys simply because it has a registered agent in a nearby county and, further, that it did not mine or sell talc in Missouri.
According to the Missouri 22nd Judicial Circuit Court for St. Louis City’s online docket, the court heard similar motions asserted by the Johnson & Johnson defendants on April 4 and took them under advisement.
The complaint involves claims asserted by 83 plaintiffs that reside in 25 different states, the Imerys ...
Subscription required. Full story found at: http://harrismartin.com/article/20654/several-motions-relating-to-jurisdiction-pending-in-missouri-talcum-powder-suit/
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14 New Talc-Based Powder Lawsuits Filed in New Jersey Coordinated Docket; Case Total Now Up to 139
Apr 11, 2016 | Harris Martin Publishing
Plaintiffs have filed 14 new talc-based powder cases in New Jersey in the last three weeks, bringing the total number of cases pending in that state’s coordinated docket to 139, according to a recent published case list.
Among those plaintiffs filing claims in the New Jersey Superior Court for Atlantic County is Diane Norris, who allegedly developed ovarian cancer after using Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder “for nearly her entire life.”
Norris filed her complaint on April 6; in it, the 68-year-old said that the defendants –– including Johnson & Johnson, Johnson & Johnson Consumer Companies ...
Subscription required. Full story found at: http://harrismartin.com/article/20661/14-new-talc-based-powder-lawsuits-filed-in-new-jersey-coordinated-docket-case-total-now-up-to-139/
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First N.J. Talc-Based Powder Lawsuit Scheduled to Begin Jury Selection in October
Apr 11, 2016 | Harris Martin Publishing
An October trial setting has been scheduled for the first talc-based powder case to proceed to trial in New Jersey’s coordinated docket, at which time a jury will hear claims from a woman who contends that her use of Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder caused her to develop ovarian cancer at the age of 36.
Jury selection is scheduled to begin on Oct. 11 in the New Jersey Superior Court for Atlantic City, sources confirmed to HarrisMartin. The Carl case is currently slotted in that trial setting.
Plaintiffs Brandi and Joel Carl filed their ...
Subscription required. Full story found at: http://harrismartin.com/article/20654/several-motions-relating-to-jurisdiction-pending-in-missouri-talcum-powder-suit/
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Johnson and Johnson baby powder and kids’ shampoo safe: Ministry
Apr 12, 2016 | The Peninsula Quatar
By Sidi Mohammed
DOHA: The Ministry of Municipality and Environment yesterday confirmed the safety of Johnson and Johnson baby powder and children shampoo, being sold in Qatar, saying that laboratory tests have showed that the products meet the Qatari specifications and standards.
The General Authority for Specifications and Standardisation at the Ministry said that it had stopped sale of the products as a precautionary measure following reports circulating on social media about a woman in the US having developed cancer after using those Johnson and Johnson products. The measure was taken in collaboration with the Consumer Protection Department at the Ministry of Economy and Commerce.
The department also sent samples of the products to an acclaimed laboratory in the US to check if it complies with the Qatari and Gulf specifications.
The dealers in Qatar have given the General Authority the names of factories which export the products to the country, The test results confirmed that it meets the Gulf and Qatar specifications and standards, said the statement.
The Authority had also sent a random samples for lab tests of the shampoo which entered the local market between January to March this year, despite reports from accredited laboratories showing that it is free from any harmful substances.
The results of the tests conducted by an accredited laboratory specialized in testing cosmetics show that the samples are free from any harmful substance and meet the Qatari specifications for hair shampoo.
So the Authority stressed that people have the right to seek clarification in case of any doubt or suspicion about the safety products.http://thepeninsulaqatar.com/news/qatar/378156/johnson-and-johnson-baby-powder-and-kids-shampoo-safe-ministry
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Qatar officials: Johnson’s baby powder is safe to use
Apr 12, 2016 | Doha News
By Shabina S. Khatri
Following an investigation into a popular baby powder brand over health concerns, Qatar’s government has declared the product safe to use.
Officials had quietly ordered Johnson’s baby powder off pharmacy and supermarket shelves last month after its American manufacturer lost a lawsuit against the family of a woman who died from ovarian cancer.
At the time, the government said it was setting up a technical committee to test the powder.
A Ministry of Municipality and Environment official said the product had also been sent to labs in Europe to ensure that they do not contain any toxic materials.Lawsuit
Last month, Johnson & Johnson was ordered to pay some $72 million in damages was awarded to the family of a woman who used the company’s talcum powder for nearly 50 years.
The woman, Jackie Fox, died of ovarian cancer last year at the age of 62.
Johnson & Johnson said at the time that it “strongly” disagrees with the jury outcome, arguing “it goes against decades of sound science proving the safety of talc as a cosmetic ingredient in multiple products.”
However, the company now faces lawsuits from than 1,000 women and their families, according to Bloomberg.
The plaintiffs assert that J&J and its supplier have known about an association between talc and ovarian cancer for years and did not warn people about it.
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http://dohanews.co/qatar-officials-johnsons-baby-powder-safe-use/
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