LTL Management, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson (J&J), files for bankruptcy so the company can pay $8.9 billion in court damages to victims who developed cancer from J&J powder – Reuters reports.
In 2018, a court ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay $4.7 billion to women whose asbestos-containing dust caused ovarian cancer. The company appealed the ruling and in 2020 managed to reduce the amount of compensation to $ 2.1 billion. They also appealed this, but the Supreme Court dismissed their claim.
The lawsuit was initiated by 22 victims against the company, but nearly 20,000 people are suing Johnson & Johnson. According to the charges, the company knew that its dusting powders contained tallow stone, also known as talc, which also contains asbestos, but did not tell customers that fact. According to investigations, asbestos-containing dusting powders have been manufactured since the 1970s and sold for decades.
This is LTL Management’s second attempt to file for bankruptcy. On Tuesday, the court denied the first round, finding that neither J&J nor LTL had financial problems that would justify bankruptcy.
In the current suit, they argue that after bankruptcy they could pay $8.9 billion in restitution — over 25 years — that would cover all current and potential future damage claims. They claim that the solution is backed by 60,000 claimants.
They also stated that this does not mean that they admit they did anything wrong and that they still believe their talcum powders are safe.
