Johnson & Johnson (J&J) has announced an offer of up to $5.5 billion (≈£4.14 billion) to settle the long‑running talc‑based baby powder lawsuits alleging that the product causes ovarian cancer.
The settlement would cover about 76,000 outstanding cases, and would pay no more than $3 billion in the first year, with any further payments deferred until 2028.
J&J says that it must secure the backing of 95% of the lawyers representing the plaintiffs in state and federal courts before the agreement can be finalized. The company has denied that its talc contains asbestos or poses a cancer risk, and has stated that studies have shown the product to be safe.
In 2022, J&J announced it would stop selling talc‑based baby powder worldwide (the product had already been discontinued in the U.S. in 2024). The spin‑off Kenvue, which handles consumer health products outside North America, still holds liability for the baby powder brand.
The proposed settlement marks the end of a legal saga that began in 2009, against the backdrop of the U.S. courts finding it difficult for plaintiffs to prove that talc was the direct cause of their ovarian cancer. With the settlement, J&J hopes to close the case and refocus on developing life‑saving medicines and devices.
