A New Jersey federal judge questioned the scientific evidence in approximately 69,000 lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson. The plaintiffs allege the company's talc products caused ovarian cancer.
The judge expressed skepticism regarding whether experts can prove talc specifically caused cancer in individual cases. Plaintiffs must now show cause why the court should not dismiss their claims for lack of admissible testimony.
Pre-trial hearings revealed that plaintiffs' experts could not effectively rule out other risk factors. This ruling marks a major victory for J&J in the decade-long multidistrict litigation.