Blog
- NJ Talc Verdict: $750 Million in Punitive Damages
Feb 6, 2020
Earlier today, a jury in Middlesex County, New Jersey handed down a punitive damages verdict of $750 million against Johnson & Johnson in a case involving claims that J&J's Baby Powder can cause cancer. The case was brought by four plaintiffs who were each exposed to Baby Powder as children and have since developed mesothelioma. In September 2019, a jury rendered a verdict finding that the product had caused the plaintiffs' injuries and that J&J...Read More - $8 Billion Verdict in Philadelphia Risperdal Trial
Oct 9, 2019
Today, following a three-week trial in Murray v. Janssen, a Philadelphia jury sent a message loud and clear to pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson and its subsidiary, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, handing down a punitive damages verdict in the amount of $8 billion against the company. The plaintiff, Nicholas Murray, was prescribed Janssen's prescription drug, Risperdal, as a boy and developed gynecomastia (breast growth). In his 2015 trial, he alleged that the drug caused his condition, that...Read More - Breaking News: $37.3 Million Verdict Against J&J in Talc Mesothelioma Trial
Sep 11, 2019
A New Jersey state court jury has awarded $37.3 million in compensatory damages to a group of four plaintiffs who claim their abdominal mesothelioma was caused by J&J Baby Powder. Last week, the trial was in the news when the presiding judge, the Hon. Ana C. Viscomi, reprimanded and ultimately struck the closing argument of J&J trial counsel after repeated violations of the court's order not to disparage the plaintiff's attorneys...Read More - Risperdal Cases Revived in Two Pennsylvania Appeals Court Rulings
Aug 22, 2019
At last count, the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas is home to more than 7,000 personal injury cases over Janssen's prescription anti-psychotic medication, Risperdal. Male plaintiffs in these cases claim that their use of the drug caused the development of gynecomastia (irreversible breast growth). Two Pennsylvania appeals court rulings have reinstated cases for trial after unfavorable rulings for the plaintiffs in the in the trial court. The first case, T.M. v. Janssen, which went to...Read More - Roundup Judge: "There was clear and convincing evidence that Monsanto's actions were reprehensible."
Jul 27, 2019
In an order entered this week, Judge Winifred Smith of the Superior Court of Alameda County, California, denied Monsanto's post-trial request for a new trial in the Roundup case, Pilliod v. Monsanto, which resulted in a $2 billion verdict for the plaintiffs in May of this year. This is the second time this month that a trial court has thwarted Monsanto's efforts to overturn a jury award entered against the company in connection with its...Read More - Roundup Judge: "Monsanto deserves to be punished."
Jul 16, 2019
In an order issued yesterday, July 15, Roundup MDL Judge Vince Chhabria denied Monsanto's request to put aside last year's verdict in Hardeman v. Monsanto, where the jury awarded the plaintiff $5 million in compensatory damages and $75 million in punitive damages. Following trial, Monsanto had raised three arguments. First, the company requested a new trial on compensatory damages, arguing that the evidence did not support the size of the $5 million award. Second, Monsanto...Read More - PA Supreme Court Weighing Risperdal Appeal on Statute of Limitations
May 17, 2019
Yesterday, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court heard oral argument from the parties in the appeals of Saksek v. Janssen and Winter v. Janssen, two cases where the plaintiffs alleged they developed gynecomastia from using Janssen's prescription drug, Risperdal. The cases were filed in Pennsylvania state court, in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, and were dismissed as untimely under Pennsylvania's two-year statute of limitations for personal injury lawsuits. The plaintiffs appealed, and the Pennsylvania Superior Court...Read More - $2 Billion Roundup Verdict Against Monsanto
May 16, 2019
Earlier this week, plaintiffs in the Roundup litigation struck another huge blow against defendant Monsanto, with a jury returning a $2 billion verdict against the company over its prized weedkiller product. Plaintiffs Alva and Alberta Pilliod, a married couple in their 70s, had used Roundup on their Northern California farm for decades, and were represented at trial by lead counsel Brent Wisner, of Baum Hedlund. Both were diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma just several years apart,...Read More - $120 Million Verdict in TVT-O Trial
May 15, 2019
Just several weeks ago, in late April, J&J's medical device subsidiary, Ethicon Inc., was tagged with yet another trial loss in the transvaginal mesh (TVM) litigation. After a three-week trial in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas before the Honorable Kenneth Powell, the jury in McFarland v. Ethicon, Inc., returned a verdict for the plaintiff of $20 million in compensatory and $100 million in punitive damages. The plaintiff, 68-year-old Susan McFarland, was implanted with the...Read More - Boeing's Woes Continue: North Charleston Plant Under Scrutiny
Apr 20, 2019
A New York Times article today reported on a troubling trend of potential safety concerns and whistle-blower reports coming out of the Boeing factory in North Charleston, South Carolina, where the company's 787 Dreamliner is manufactured. The Times' investigation, which involved review of internal documents and interviews with current and former employees, shows evidence that the company might have been attempting to rush Dreamliners to market at the expense of safety. John Barnett, a former...Read More