Johnson & Johnson will pay $5.5 billion to resolve several lawsuits alleging its baby powder and other talc products cause ovarian cancer, marking a landmark settlement aimed at ending contentious litigation, Reuters reported citing the company's statement on Monday.
According to Johnson & Johnson, the settlement will cover nearly 69,000 cases consolidated in federal court in New Jersey, and similar cases in state court, up to 99.75% of the remaining talc claims.
The deal was confirmed by plaintiffs' law firms on Monday, noting that it was a good resolution after a decade-long court battle. This deal has to be approved by the judge overseeing the federal litigation.
Johnson & Johnson's vice president of litigation, Erik Haas, said the claims were "meritless" and the company plans to settle the claims to get closure.
"While we are confident the company would have ultimately prevailed with further litigation, as it has in the vast majority of cases tried to date, this resolution allows the company to put this matter behind it and remain focused on its mission to develop medicines and devices that save lives," the report quoted Haas.
Last week, Johnson & Johnson secured a major court victory in the long-running legal battle, after a federal judge raised doubts over individual plaintiffs' ability to prove that talc specifically caused their ovarian cancer.
The company has denied that its talc products caused cancer for the longest time, saying that talc was safe and did not contain asbestos. In 2020, it stopped selling talc-based baby powder in the US, replacing it with cornstarch product.
In March 2025, the litigation resumed after over three years of halt during Johnson & Johnson's failed measures to resolve the lawsuits via shell company's bankruptcy.
Notably, the latest agreement is only applies to existing claims and does not address future legal petitions.
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