Legal
J&J Weighs Third Bankruptcy Try to Settle Baby Powder Suits
- J&J lawyer told investors new Chapter 11 filing is possible
- Courts threw out first two bankruptcies tied to tainted talc
J&J now faces at least 51,000 lawsuits claiming talc used in baby power and similar products caused cancer.
Photographer: Scott Eells/Bloomberg
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Johnson & Johnson said it is weighing a third attempt to use bankruptcy for an $8.9 billion settlement of tens of thousands of lawsuits that allege tainted talc in the company’s baby powder caused cancer.
Erik Haas, J&J’s lawyer in charge of litigation, said during the company’s earnings call Tuesday that the world’s largest maker of health-care products is working with law firms representing “the vast majority” of talc victims to settle all current and future cases that could potentially cost J&J billions of dollars in damages if they go to jury trials.