Products Liability Law Reporter

Verdicts & Settlements: Consumer Products

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Verdict for talc user’s mesothelioma

November 5, 2024

Evan Plotkin used Johnson’s Baby Powder since the 1950s. He also was exposed to the powder through his children’s use of the product. In 2021, he was diagnosed as having mesothelioma.

He and his wife sued Johnson & Johnson; Pecos River Talc, LLC; Johnson & Johnson Holdco (NA) Inc.; Kenvue, Inc.; and LLT Management LLC, alleging claims for negligence, strict liability, failure to warn, and successor liability. The plaintiffs claimed that Plotkin’s illness resulted from talc-related asbestos exposure.

The jury awarded $15 million, finding that the plaintiffs were entitled to punitive damages.

Citation: Plotkin v. Johnson & Johnson, No. FBT-CV-6109520-S (Conn. Jud. Dist. Ct. Bridgeport Oct. 15, 2024).

Plaintiff counsel: AAJ members Benjamin Braly and Ethan Horn, both of Dallas; and AAJ member Brian Kenney, New Haven, Conn.