$40M Verdict Against J&J in California Ovarian Cancer Case

A Los Angeles jury awarded $40 million to two women who developed ovarian cancer after decades of using Johnson & Johnson’s talc-based body powders. The verdict, handed down on December 12, 2025, in Los Angeles Superior Court before Judge Theresa Traber, is the first ovarian cancer talc verdict for plaintiffs in four years, breaking a silence imposed by J&J’s three failed bankruptcy attempts.

The jury granted $22 million to Deborah Schultz and her husband Albert, including $13.5 million in compensatory damages and $8.5 million for loss of consortium. Monica Kent received $18 million. Jurors found J&J liable for negligence, failure to warn, and concealment of asbestos risks.

The Plaintiffs’ Cases

Both women relied on J&J’s talc-based baby powder for feminine hygiene for more than 50 years before their ovarian cancer diagnoses. The four-to-five-week bellwether trial presented internal company documents and testimony indicating that J&J detected asbestos contamination in its talc as far back as the 1960s and 1970s but concealed this from regulators and consumers.

Former FDA Commissioner Dr. David Kessler testified about J&J’s decades-long failure to disclose safety risks, including evidence that the company manipulated research findings. Medical experts presented evidence that long-term genital talc use increases ovarian cancer risk by more than 50%, with consistent exposure potentially doubling the risk.

First Plaintiffs’ Win Since 2021

This verdict marks the first time plaintiffs prevailed in an ovarian cancer talc trial since 2021. That year, Johnson & Johnson created a subsidiary called LTL Management, transferred its talc liabilities to it, and filed for bankruptcy protection, halting all scheduled trials on ovarian cancer claims. Federal courts rejected this “Texas Two-Step” strategy three times, in 2021, 2023, and again in April 2025, allowing trials to resume.

The California case was the first of six paired bellwether trials scheduled through mid-2026. A second set began in January 2026.

A Pattern of Accountability

The Schultz and Kent verdict joins a pattern of substantial awards against J&J:

• $1.56 billion to Cherie Craft in Baltimore (December 2025), the largest single talc verdict
• $966 million to Mae Moore’s family in California (October 2025)
• $65.5 million to a Minnesota mother with pleural mesothelioma
• $42.6 million to Paul Lovell’s family in Massachusetts (January 2026)
• $4.69 billion Missouri verdict for 22 women, later reduced to $2.12 billion

J&J stopped selling talc-based baby powder in the US in 2020 and discontinued global sales in 2023, switching to cornstarch. The company maintains the change was driven by market preferences rather than safety concerns.

What Happens Next

Johnson & Johnson announced plans to immediately appeal, maintaining its talc products were safe and asbestos-free. At least 10 additional bellwether trials are scheduled through the first half of 2026, with more than 70,000 talc claims pending in federal and state courts nationwide.

For people affected by talc-related cancers, the verdict signals that juries are willing to hold manufacturers accountable when internal documents reveal knowledge of concealed risks, even after years of litigation delays.