Johnson & Johnson has agreed to pay $5.5 billion to settle tens of thousands of lawsuits in the United States alleging that its discontinued talc-based baby powder caused ovarian cancer. The proposed settlement has covered around 69,000 cases in US federal and state courts, representing 99.75% of the outstanding talc-related cases in the country.
As per media reports, the settlement has been set to become final only if it has been accepted by 95% of the claimants in state or federal courts.
Talc, a soft mineral that was once widely used in cosmetics and baby products, has seen its use decline amid concerns over its potential links to cancer. In 2024, the World Health Organization classified talc as “probably carcinogenic to humans.”
Johnson & Johnson has continued to maintain that there is no evidence linking talc to cancer. However, the company has stopped selling talc-based baby powder in the United States in 2020 and globally in 2023.
The company has faced litigation over its talc products for several years. In 2016, a US jury ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay $72 million to the family of a woman who died of ovarian cancer in the first such case related to talc use in the country. Although the verdict was overturned a year later, lawsuits against the company have continued, with several juries awarding damages to plaintiffs.
The settlement has not included the United Kingdom, where a product liability case involving more than 7,000 potential claimants has been under adjudication in the UK High Court since being filed in October 2025. The claim has alleged that Johnson & Johnson knew its talc products could cause cancers, including ovarian cancer and mesothelioma, but continued to market them. The company has denied those allegations.
