Johnson & Johnson lawsuit trial overview:
- Who: A Los Angeles jury awarded $32 million to the family of a woman who died of mesothelioma.
- Why: The jury found the woman’s illness was caused by decades of use of Johnson’s Baby Powder.
- Where: The trial took place in California state court.
- How to get help: Did you use talc powder on a daily basis for at least four years and were later diagnosed with ovarian cancer? If so, you may be eligible to join a talc powder class action lawsuit.
A jury has awarded $32 million to the family of a woman who died of mesothelioma after allegedly using Johnson’s Baby Powder on herself and her children for decades.
The Los Angeles jury found the Johnson & Johnson product was a substantial factor in causing the woman’s illness, Law360 reports.
The jury awarded the family of Maria Lozano compensatory damages after Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Graciela Freixes granted J&J’s motion for a directed verdict on punitive damages, ruling the company could not be held liable for those damages.
The verdict follows a defense win for J&J in a recent Los Angeles bellwether trial, where a jury found the company’s talc products were not a substantial factor in causing ovarian cancer in three women.
According to Law360, J&J faces thousands of coordinated lawsuits in Los Angeles alleging its talc products caused mesothelioma or ovarian cancer. The cases are being handled through separate Judicial Council Coordination Proceedings.
Johnson & Johnson argues environmental conditions to blame for woman’s illness
During the trial, J&J argued that environmental exposures in Mexico City, where Lozano lived until age 21, as well as cosmetic products she used and products used by her husband while working in the automotive industry, were responsible for her illness. The jury ultimately rejected those arguments.
“Johnson & Johnson tried to blame everything from environmental conditions in Mexico City to cosmetics and automotive work,” said Danny Kraft of Dean Omar Branham Shirley LLP, counsel for Lozano’s family. “The jury concluded that Maria Lozano’s mesothelioma was caused by decades of exposure to asbestos-contaminated Johnson’s Baby Powder.”
J&J intends to immediately appeal the verdict, according to Law360.
Jurors found that Johnson & Johnson failed to adequately warn consumers of the potential risks of Johnson’s Baby Powder.
They also found the product contained a manufacturing defect when it left Johnson & Johnson’s possession, that its design risks outweighed its benefits, and that it failed to perform as safely as an ordinary consumer would expect.
The verdict follows a $40 million award in a separate ovarian cancer case in December 2025 and a $966 million verdict in October 2025 that a judge later reduced to $16 million.
What do you think of the $32 million verdict in this Johnson & Johnson trial? Let us know in the comments.
The plaintiff is represented by Danny Kraft and Mark Linder of Dean Omar Branham Shirley LLP.
The Johnson & Johnson lawsuit is Lozano v. Johnson & Johnson, et al., Case No. 23STCV16061, and the coordinated proceeding is LAOSD Asbestos Cases, Case No. JCCP4674, in the Superior Court of the State of California, County of Los Angeles.
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