J&J can contest evidence linking its talc to cancer, judge rules

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NEW YORK (Reuters) -Johnson & Johnson will get a new chance to contest the scientific evidence linking talc products to ovarian cancer, a federal judge ruled on Wednesday, potentially disrupting a federal court case that consolidates 53,000 lawsuits.

U.S. District Judge Michael Shipp in a brief written order said recent changes in the law and new scientific evidence requires a fresh review of the evidence that linked J&J products to ovarian cancer.

Shipp took over the case in February 2023, after the retirement of former Chief District Judge Freda Wolfson, who had overseen the litigation since 2016.

J&J Worldwide Vice President of Litigation Erik Haas said the company was very pleased by the ruling, and that it intended to “shine a light on some of the made-for-court junk science” used in recent trials.

“The passage of time has only solidified the decades of medicine and science that support Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)’s position in these cases,” Haas said in a statement.

J&J has repeatedly denied claims that its baby powder and other talc products cause cancer or contain asbestos, a known cause of mesothelioma.

The talc lawsuits had been on hold from 2021 to 2023, while J&J pursued a failed effort to resolve the litigation through the bankruptcy of a subsidiary company, LTL Management. Trials have since resumed, and the latest case ended in a hung jury on March 5.