A $37.3 million Johnson and Johnson baby powder lawsuit verdict survived the company’s dismissal attempt, which a New Jersey judge called “premature.”

In denying Johnson and Johnson’s attempt to toss the multi-million dollar compensatory damages verdict based on claims by four people who contend that they developed mesothelioma from J&J’s baby powder, Superior Court Judge Ana C. Viscomi stressed that “this trial is not over.” The punitive damages phase of the trial had not yet begun.

“It is premature to seek this relief,” said Judge Viscomi. “This relief can only properly be sought at the end of the trial, and end of the trial would be the end of the final phase of this trial.”

She also denied Johnson and Johnson’s arguments that the claims by plaintiff Will R., who is now deceased, should not be included in the punitive damages portion of the trial.

Johnson and Johnson argued that the news of Will’s death in early October would prejudice the jury against the defendants. The judge rejected this argument. She referenced her own decision in another asbestos trial where she concluded that “certainly a jury is entitled to know of the death, that it would be a fraud on the jury, a fraud upon the court to not acknowledge the death of the plaintiff who died in the middle of trial.”

Johnson and Johnson Baby Powder Lawsuit Claims

Plaintiffs in the Johnson and Johnson baby powder lawsuit claim that they were exposed to the company’s talc-based powder products when they were babies. They say this exposure led to their terminal mesothelioma.

Mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer that affects the mesothelium, the thin tissue covering the internal organs. This aggressive form of cancer can affect the pleura around the lungs, the peritoneum around the abdomen, the pericardium around the heart, and linings in others of the body. Asbestos, which is found in talc, is a risk factor for developing the disease, according to the Mayo Clinic.

The plaintiffs argued that Johnson and Johnson baby powder was contaminated with talc and led to them developing mesothelioma. They contend that J&J has known for some 50 years that its baby powder “contained trace amounts of asbestos, but failed to alert consumers or regulators,” according to Bloomberg News.

Although the safety of talc is the subject of debate by regulators and authorities around the world, most agree that asbestos is a known carcinogen. If asbestos is found in talc, this reportedly has the same carcinogenic effect. The World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) reportedly classifies talc as “possibly carcinogenic to humans” but definitively classifies talc with asbestos as “carcinogenic to humans.”

The compensatory phase of the Johnson and Johnson baby powder lawsuit trial lasted nearly two months before concluding on Sept. 11. The plaintiffs were awarded $37.3 million in compensatory damages, with the potential for even more in punitive damages.

Johnson and Johnson argued that its defense has suffered “death by a thousand cuts” and points to allegedly unfair rulings giving the plaintiffs a favorable outcome. The company will reportedly continue to argue for the safety of its baby powder products and their innocence in the claims.

The Johnson and Johnson Baby Powder Lawsuit Cases are Case Nos. L-1809-17, L-932-17, L-7049-16, and L-6040-17, in the Superior Court of the State of New Jersey for the County of Middlesex.