"Johnson & Johnson offers $5.5bn to settle talc cancer lawsuits", 28 July 2026

Johnson & Johnson (J&J) has agreed to pay $5.5bn to settle tens of thousands of lawsuits in the United States that allege its discontinued talc-based baby powder caused ovarian cancer.

The pharmaceutical giant made the announcement on Monday, saying it covers about 69,000 cases in US federal and state courts, accounting for 99.75 percent of outstanding talc-related cases in the country.

The settlement will only be final once it is accepted by 95 percent of the claimants in state or federal courts…

J&J maintains that there is no evidence that talc causes cancer, but it stopped selling talc-based baby powder in the US in 2020 and worldwide in 2023…

Erik Haas, J&J’s litigation head, said the agreement lets J&J “put this matter behind it”.

Lawyers representing the plaintiffs welcomed the settlement as a good resolution to a decade-long court battle.

The deal does not cover the United Kingdom, where the largest product liability case in UK history – covering more than 7,000 potential claimants – is being adjudicated…