Johnson & Johnson said it set aside almost $4 billion to cover the biggest verdict against the company over its Baby Powder and other settlements while it’s appealing the 2018 loss to the U.S. Supreme Court.
In a Monday securities filing, J&J said it was taking a “litigation expense of $3.9 billion” related to ‘primarily talc-related reserves and certain settlements.” It also said J&J now faces 25,000 lawsuits by former Baby Powder users who claim asbestos-laced talc in the product caused their cancers. That’s almost a 39% jump in the number of cases from last year.
It reserved some of the money for a 2018 Missouri verdict for 20 women who blamed the company’s powders for ovarian cancer. The $4.7 billion verdict was later cut to $2.1 billion and J&J appealed.
Read more here