Avon Talcum Powder Lawsuit Ends in $24M Jury Verdict Over Asbestos Exposure

Former janitor indicates Avon failed to warn about the mesothelioma risks from asbestos exposure while working at a cosmetics facility in Chicago.

A talcum powder lawsuit filed against Avon has resulted in a $24.4 million verdict, after a jury found that the cosmetics company knew or should have known its talc-based products were contaminated with asbestos, which caused a janitor to develop mesothelioma.

The verdict was returned in a complaint brought by Cipriano Ramirez, who was diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma in 2023, after working at an Avon manufacturing facility near Chicago in the early 1980s. According to evidence presented at trial, Ramirez developed the cancer after repeated exposure to asbestos particles in Avon talcum powder.

Asbestos exposure is known to be the primary cause of mesothelioma, which is a rare form of cancer that attacks the lining of the chest and lungs, and can go undetected for decades. As a result it is often at a very advanced stage by the time it is diagnosed, resulting in a limited life expectancy.

Most of the litigation over asbestos in talcum powder products has been aimed at Johnson & Johnson, which also faces tens of thousands of lawsuits alleging that Johnson’s Baby Powder and Shower-to-Shower talc powder were sold for years with asbestos contamination, causing former users to develop mesothelioma, ovarian cancer and other ailments.

Although Johnson & Johnson denied for years that there was asbestos in it’s talcum powder, the company issued a Baby Powder recall in 2019, after confirmed the presence of the toxic fibers in the widely-used cosmetic powder. The company has since phased out the use of talc powders, instead marketing products containing cornstarch.

In this recent trial, Ramirez raised similar accusations against Avon, indicating that the company has ignored evidence for years that asbestos particles were in its talcum powder products. Following a month of evidence being presented, a Chicago-area jury agreed, and awarded Ramirez and his family $24.4 million in damages.

During the trial, Ramirez’s attorneys contended that Avon knew some of its talc products contained asbestos, but failed to take actions to protect workers and consumers from asbestos exposure.

In 2020, Avon was acquired by Natura Cosmetics SA, which then removed talc from all of the company’s products marketed in the United States.

August 2024 Johnsons Baby Powder Lawsuit Update

Johnson & Johnson currently faces an estimated 100,000 Baby Powder lawsuits and Shower-to-Shower lawsuits that are working through the U.S. court system, and several cases have also gone to trial against the company that have resulted in billions of dollars in damages being awarded to former consumers. While many of the claims involve former users diagnosed with mesothelioma, most involve the development of ovarian cancer.

Just last month, researchers with the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) confirmed that there is a link between talcum powder and ovarian cancer, concluding that the substance is probably a cancer-causing agent.

Given common questions of fact and law raised in complaints filed throughout the federal court system, all talcum powder cancer lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson specifically have been centralized in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey since 2016. However, just before the first federal ovarian cancer jury trials were set to begin, Johnson & Johnson derailed the litigation by pursuing its failed bankruptcy maneuver.

Rather than attempting to negotiate settlements to potentially resolve claims, Johnson & Johnson has made two failed attempts to force the litigation into the U.S. bankruptcy system, by transferring all liability it owes for failing to warn about the link between talc and cancer into a new subsidiary, which them promptly filed for bankruptcy. However, federal judges rejected both efforts, noting that the parent company Johnson & Johnson faced no real financial distress from the litigation, and has sufficient assets to settle the claims.

In May, Johnson & Johnson proposed a third bankruptcy attempt, including a $6.5 billion settlement to resolve all current and future Baby Powder lawsuits involving women diagnosed with ovarian cancer, which makes up the bulk of litigation the company currently faces. However, many plaintiffs’ lawyers have again roundly rejected the effort, indicating that the amount of the settlement is insufficient to compensate women who relied on the safety of Johnson & Johnson talcum powder products, as well as future claims the company may face.