On October 5, 2021, in Monroe v. Johnson & Johnson, 2018RSCS01222, a state court jury cleared Johnson & Johnson and its Georgia-based bottler of responsibility for the cancer death of a retired teacher who had used Johnson’s Baby Powder for more than half a century. The Richmond County State Court jury deliberated for less than four hours before finding in favor of J&J and PTI Royston on a host of claims stemming from the 2018 death of Margie Evans. The decision represents the first state court cosmetic talc case involving J&J to reach a verdict in Georgia.
Evans, a Richmond County School teacher for more than 30 years, had used Johnson’s Baby Powder for decades before being diagnosed with the ovarian cancer that ultimately led to her death. Her family contends asbestos in the talc used for J&J’s Baby Powder caused the disease.
Plainitff’s family sought more than $84 million in compensatory damages, including $58 million for Evans’ death and $26 million for her pain and suffering, plus possible punitives. Cosmetic talc lawsuits typically claim that fibers in the powder cause either mesothelioma or, as in this case, ovarian cancer. Monroe was among the first state court trials over talc’s alleged links to ovarian cancer since pandemic-related court shutdowns last year. And the three-week trial focused on what connection, if any J&J’s talc had to Evans’ cancer.
In a statement released after the verdict, J&J said it sympathized with ovarian cancer patients and their families, but it noted Tuesday’s decision was the fifth defense verdict in a row on the issue. “And yet, despite the lack of any scientific evidence to support their claims,” the J&J statement read, “the plaintiff trial bar continues to push forward with its misinformation campaign to drive baseless and inflammatory headlines in the hopes they can force a resolution of these cases. The claims by these lawyers are unfounded and it is clear the only interest they have is their own financial gain.”
NOTE: Augusta, home of The Masters, is located in Richmond County, GA. According to Wiki: “Similar to most urban counties in the State [of Georgia] with majority African American populations, Richmond County has backed the Democratic Party candidate by increasing margins since 1992. However in every presidential election from 1952 to 1988 which did not have Georgian Jimmy Carter on the ballot, the county backed the Republican candidate for president.”