A Missouri judge recently upheld a $4.69 billion Johnson and Johnson jury award in a baby powder asbestos lawsuit.

St. Louis Circuit Court Judge Rex Burlison determined that the compensatory damages of $550 million were “fair and reasonable” and that due process was followed in deciding on the $4.14 billion punitive damages award.

“First, substantial evidence was adduced at trial of particularly reprehensible conduct on the part of defendants, including that defendants knew of the presence of asbestos in products that they knowingly targeted for sale to mothers and babies, knew of the damage their products caused and misrepresented the safety of these products for decades,” Judge Burlison rules.

“Second, defendants’ actions caused significant physical harm and potential harm, including ovarian cancer in plaintiffs or plaintiffs’ decedents.”

Judge Burlison also rejected claims that the women who were awarded the Johnson and Johnson jury award failed to show reliable expert evidence that their ovarian cancer was caused by baby powder usage.

“The evidence presented at trial includes the testimony of plaintiffs’ expert witnesses, evidence of the testing of the products at issue, including defendants’ own testing, defendants’ correspondence and the testimony of defendants’ own corporate representative and chief medical officer,” the judge wrote.

In addition to denying Johnson and Johnson’s bid for dismissal, the judge also denied the company’s request for a new trial. Judge Burlison found that the company failed to show a reasonable cause for a new trial, but the company remains optimistic.

“The same judge has denied similar motions on prior verdicts in his court that were ultimately overturned by the appellate courts,” Johnson and Johnson said in a statement, according to Law360. “We are confident this verdict will also be overturned on appeal. We plan to file our notice of appeal in the coming weeks.”

The $4.69 billion Johnson and Johnson jury award was granted in July 2018 and, although it was not the first, it is the largest verdict among similar cases with around $213 million awarded to each plaintiff.

Other Johnson and Johnson jury award verdicts include a $417 million award in California which was later tossed, a $117 million verdict in New Jersey, and a $117 million verdict in Missouri.

The jury unanimously held Johnson and Johnson and another J&J company liable for negligence and strict liability in all of the plaintiff’s alleged ovarian cancer injuries.

The Johnson and Johnson jury award provided each woman who sued independently with $25 million in compensatory damages. Each woman who sued with their spouse was awarded $12.5 million.

In total, Johnson and Johnson jury award granted $550 million in compensatory damages. These awards did not include the billions granted in punitive damages.

“Judge Burlison’s well-reasoned decision recites the science, evidence, and the law in upholding an important judgment that delivers justice to 22 victims of an insidious cancer,” said plaintiff counsel in a statement. “We look forward to arguing this same evidence and science to the appellate courts.”

The Baby Powder Lawsuit is Case No. 1522-CC10417, in the 22nd Judicial Circuit of Missouri.