CVN screenshot of defense attorney Morty Dubin of King & Spalding LLP delivering his closing argument
Sarasota, FL - A Florida state court jury delivered a defense verdict for Johnson & Johnson Thursday in a lawsuit claiming cosmetic talc products caused a woman’s fatal cancer, and the full trial was recorded gavel-to-gavel by Courtroom View Network.
The Sarasota County jury returned their verdict the day after hearing closing arguments in the three-week trial. They rejected claims from plaintiff Philippe Matthey that Johnson’s Baby Powder caused his mother, Patricia Matthey, to develop ovarian cancer. Patricia died in 2019 after decades of using the popular personal hygiene product, which plaintiffs allege was contaminated with asbestos.
During the trial - one of the first cosmetic talc cases to go before a Florida jury - Matthey’s attorneys maintained J&J knew for years that talc-based products like Johnson’s Baby Powder contained asbestos but withheld that knowledge from consumers, however J&J successfully argued those conclusions were based on flawed scientific studies and that Patricia’s medical history made her especially likely to develop ovarian cancer.
The full trial, including all witness testimony, was webcast and recorded gavel-to-gavel by CVN. Subscribers to CVN’s online trial video library get unlimited on-demand access to the full proceedings along with dozens of other cosmetic talc and asbestos trials from throughout the United States in addition to hundreds of other trials from a wide range of practice areas.
J&J’s Worldwide Vice President of Litigation, Erik Haas, told CVN the verdict should encourage plaintiff attorneys to pursue a comprehensive settlement that would resolve the tens of thousands of talc-related lawsuits still pending against the company.
“Consistent with decades of scientific research, the jury appropriately found that talc is safe, does not contain asbestos and does not cause cancer, which is the same outcome the Company achieved in 16 of 17 ovarian cases tried to date,” Haas said. “The plaintiffs’ bar should cease their pursuit of aberrant jackpot verdicts by proffering false and misleading narratives designed to confuse and deceive.”
Attorney Lance Oliver of Motley Rice, who represented the Matthey family along with attorney Leigh O’Dell of Beasley Allen, expressed gratitude for the jury’s service but disagreed with their verdict.
“Obviously, we believe in our case against Johnson and Johnson and our clients,” Oliver told CVN. “So we believe this was not the right result, but this is part of the process, which we ultimately hope will bring this company to account.”
Thursday’s defense verdict comes shortly after a mistrial due to a hung jury in a Miami talc trial that was also recorded by CVN. A retrial in that case is scheduled for later this summer. Another J&J talc trial is scheduled to begin next month in Portland, Oregon.
The Sarasota case is captioned Matthey v. Johnson & Johnson, case number 2018CA004809 in Florida’s 12th Judicial Circuit in Sarasota County.
E-mail David Siegel at dsiegel@cvn.com