Johnson & Johnson Talcum Powder Cases

Summary

A closely watched trial over claims Johnson & Johnsons talc-based baby powder caused two womens ovarian cancer ended December 12th with a $40 million verdict

The Los Angeles County jury returned their verdict the day after hearing closing arguments in a lengthy trial that began with opening statements in mid-November. They awarded plaintiffs Monica Kent and Deborah Schultz $18 and $22 million in compensatory damages, respectively, but declined to award any punitive damages.

PLEASE NOTE: Due to camera placement restrictions and the requirement jurors not appear on camera, only audio of the attorneys during opening statements (along with images of demonstratives) is available.

Outcome

Monica Kent - $18 million compensatory
Deborah Schultz - $22 million compensatory

Case Information

Attorneys

Witnesses

Plaintiff: Kent, Monica
Schultz, Deborah and Albert
Defense: Johnson & Johnson
Verdict: $40,000,000

Judge: Theresa Traber
Jurisdiction: Superior Court of California, Los Angeles
Court: Stanley Mosk Courthouse

Case Number: JCCP4872
Industry: Chemical
Practice Area: Products Liability, Asbestos

Plaintiff

Kent, Monica

Represented By:
Birchfield, Andy (Beasley Allen Law Firm)
O'Dell, Leigh (Beasley Allen Law Firm)
Thompson, Margaret (Beasley Allen Law Firm)

Plaintiff

Schultz, Deborah and Albert

Represented By:
Dagostino, Paul (Robinson Calcagnie, Inc.)
Robinson, Daniel (Robinson Calcagnie, Inc.)

Defense

Johnson & Johnson

Sessions

Attorney
Witness
Witness Expertise
Type
Description

AM Session

Openings

4 Chapters

	Description	Attorney
00:00:00	General Case Activities
00:38:14	Opening Statement	Birchfield, Andy
01:39:30	Opening Statement	Robinson, Daniel
01:49:36	End of Session

PM Session

Openings

5 Chapters

NOV

AM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

4 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Witness Expertise	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Birchfield, Andy	Kessler, Dr. David M.D.	Pediatric Medicine	In Person
00:32:48	Break
01:17:18	Witness Direct Examination	Birchfield, Andy	Kessler, Dr. David M.D.	Pediatric Medicine	In Person
02:19:45	End of Session

PM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

4 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Witness Expertise	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Birchfield, Andy	Kessler, Dr. David M.D.	Pediatric Medicine	In Person
01:05:13	Break
01:25:09	Witness Direct Examination	Birchfield, Andy	Kessler, Dr. David M.D.	Pediatric Medicine	In Person
02:02:35	End of Session

NOV

AM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

6 Chapters

PM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

4 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Witness Expertise	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Cross Examination	Brown, Allison	Kessler, Dr. David M.D.	Pediatric Medicine	In Person
00:39:12	Break
01:02:31	Witness Cross Examination	Brown, Allison	Kessler, Dr. David M.D.	Pediatric Medicine	In Person
02:49:42	End of Session

NOV

AM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

4 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Witness Expertise	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Cross Examination	Brown, Allison	Kessler, Dr. David M.D.	Pediatric Medicine	In Person
01:16:38	Break
01:56:03	Witness Cross Examination	Brown, Allison	Kessler, Dr. David M.D.	Pediatric Medicine	In Person
02:40:52	End of Session

PM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

5 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Witness Expertise	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Cross Examination	Brown, Allison	Kessler, Dr. David M.D.	Pediatric Medicine	In Person
00:25:36	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Birchfield, Andy	Kessler, Dr. David M.D.	Pediatric Medicine	In Person
01:05:59	Break
01:29:14	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Birchfield, Andy	Kessler, Dr. David M.D.	Pediatric Medicine	In Person
02:28:35	End of Session

NOV

AM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

5 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Witness Expertise	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	O'Dell, Leigh	Longo, Dr. William Ph.D.	Materials Science	In Person
01:11:42	Break
01:34:06	Witness Direct Examination	O'Dell, Leigh	Longo, Dr. William Ph.D.	Materials Science	In Person
02:25:50	Witness Cross Examination	Brown, Allison	Longo, Dr. William Ph.D.	Materials Science	In Person
02:36:12	End of Session

PM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

6 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Witness Expertise	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Cross Examination	Brown, Allison	Longo, Dr. William Ph.D.	Materials Science	In Person
01:15:48	Break
01:32:37	Witness Cross Examination	Brown, Allison	Longo, Dr. William Ph.D.	Materials Science	In Person
02:36:32	Break
02:51:06	Witness Re-Direct Examination	O'Dell, Leigh	Longo, Dr. William Ph.D.	Materials Science	In Person
03:05:36	End of Session

NOV

AM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

4 Chapters

PM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

5 Chapters

NOV

AM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

5 Chapters

PM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

5 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Witness Expertise	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Robinson, Daniel	Godleski , Dr. John	Pathology	In Person
01:06:24	Break
01:34:24	Witness Direct Examination	Robinson, Daniel	Godleski , Dr. John	Pathology	In Person
02:02:59	Witness Cross Examination	Huang, Kuan	Godleski , Dr. John	Pathology	In Person
02:38:12	End of Session

NOV

AM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

5 Chapters

PM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

5 Chapters

NOV

AM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

6 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Witness Expertise	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Cross Examination	Huang, Kuan	Godleski , Dr. John	Pathology	Video Conference
01:02:09	Break
01:19:34	Witness Cross Examination	Huang, Kuan	Godleski , Dr. John	Pathology	Video Conference
01:58:12	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Robinson, Daniel	Godleski , Dr. John	Pathology	Video Conference
02:29:13	Witness Direct Examination		Hopkins, John		Video Recording
02:35:35	End of Session

PM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

5 Chapters

NOV

AM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

4 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Witness Expertise	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Brown, Allison	Kent, Monica		In Person
00:42:05	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Birchfield, Andy	Kent, Monica		In Person
00:49:27	Witness Direct Examination	Robinson, Daniel	Yessaian, Dr. Annie M.D.	Obstetrics & Gynecology	In Person
02:03:32	End of Session

PM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

8 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Witness Expertise	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Robinson, Daniel	Yessaian, Dr. Annie M.D.	Obstetrics & Gynecology	In Person
00:41:35	Witness Cross Examination	Huang, Kuan	Yessaian, Dr. Annie M.D.	Obstetrics & Gynecology	In Person
01:53:16	Break
02:10:16	Witness Cross Examination	Huang, Kuan	Yessaian, Dr. Annie M.D.	Obstetrics & Gynecology	In Person
02:50:19	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Robinson, Daniel	Yessaian, Dr. Annie M.D.	Obstetrics & Gynecology	In Person
03:03:58	Witness Re-Cross Examination	Huang, Kuan	Yessaian, Dr. Annie M.D.	Obstetrics & Gynecology	In Person
03:06:18	Witness Direct Examination	Robinson, Daniel	Schultz, Dr. Albert		In Person
03:22:35	End of Session

DEC

AM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

6 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Robinson, Daniel	Schultz, Dr. Albert	In Person
00:43:36	Witness Cross Examination	Brown, Allison	Schultz, Dr. Albert	In Person
01:04:32	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Robinson, Daniel	Schultz, Dr. Albert	In Person
01:10:09	Witness Re-Cross Examination	Brown, Allison	Schultz, Dr. Albert	In Person
01:12:59	Witness Direct Examination	Robinson, Daniel	Schultz, Deborah	In Person
02:03:54	End of Session

PM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

8 Chapters

DEC

AM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

5 Chapters

PM Session

Plaintiff Witness(es)

7 Chapters

DEC

AM Session

Defense Witness(es)

5 Chapters

PM Session

Defense Witness(es)

8 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Witness Expertise	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Cross Examination	Birchfield, Andy	Howitt, Dr. Brooke M.D		In Person
00:09:10	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Huang, Kuan	Howitt, Dr. Brooke M.D		In Person
00:18:12	Witness Direct Examination	Brown, Allison	Sanchez, Dr. Matthew Ph.D.	Other	In Person
01:16:00	Break
01:33:39	General Case Activities
01:42:20	Witness Direct Examination	Brown, Allison	Sanchez, Dr. Matthew Ph.D.	Other	In Person
02:45:16	Witness Cross Examination	O'Dell, Leigh	Sanchez, Dr. Matthew Ph.D.	Other	In Person
03:26:02	End of Session

DEC

AM Session

Defense Witness(es)

5 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Witness Expertise	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Cross Examination	O'Dell, Leigh	Sanchez, Dr. Matthew Ph.D.	Other	In Person
01:06:00	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Brown, Allison	Sanchez, Dr. Matthew Ph.D.	Other	In Person
01:12:17	Break
01:30:53	Witness Direct Examination	Brown, Allison	Diette, Dr. Gregory	Pulmonology	In Person
02:45:01	End of Session

PM Session

Defense Witness(es)

9 Chapters

DEC

AM Session

Defense Witness(es)

5 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Huang, Kuan	Merlo, Dr. Christian MD	In Person
00:27:05	Witness Cross Examination	Dagostino, Paul	Merlo, Dr. Christian MD	In Person
00:42:45	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Huang, Kuan	Merlo, Dr. Christian MD	In Person
00:48:55	Witness Direct Examination	Brown, Allison	Kuffner, Dr. Edwin M.D.	In Person
01:12:37	End of Session

PM Session

Defense Witness(es)

3 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Brown, Allison	Kuffner, Dr. Edwin M.D.	In Person
01:21:59	Witness Cross Examination	O'Dell, Leigh	Kuffner, Dr. Edwin M.D.	In Person
01:48:05	End of Session

AM Session

Defense Witness(es)

2 Chapters

PM Session

Defense Witness(es)

3 Chapters

DEC

AM Session

Defense Witness(es)

5 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Witness Expertise	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Brown, Allison	Saenz, Dr. Cheryl M.D.	Obstetrics & Gynecology	In Person
01:03:11	Break
01:32:50	Witness Direct Examination	Brown, Allison	Saenz, Dr. Cheryl M.D.	Obstetrics & Gynecology	In Person
02:20:23	Witness Cross Examination	O'Dell, Leigh	Saenz, Dr. Cheryl M.D.	Obstetrics & Gynecology	In Person
02:32:05	End of Session

PM Session

Defense Witness(es)

9 Chapters

DEC

AM Session

Defense Witness(es)

5 Chapters

PM Session

Defense Witness(es)

8 Chapters

AM Session

Defense Witness(es)

3 Chapters

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Witness Expertise	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Re-Cross Examination	O'Dell, Leigh	Kuffner, Dr. Edwin M.D.		In Person
00:05:55	Witness Direct Examination	Huang, Kuan	Finan, Michael	Obstetrics & Gynecology	In Person
00:54:39	End of Session

DEC

AM Session

Closings

7 Chapters

PM Session

Closings

7 Chapters

DEC

AM Session

Other

2 Chapters

PM Session

Verdict

2 Chapters

DEC

Recording Disclaimer: This proceeding was recorded in full.

Johnson & Johnson Talcum Powder Cases

Summary

Outcome

Sessions

AudioCaseFiles

Essentials

Training Libraries

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Witness Expertise	Presence
00:00:00	General Case Activities
00:03:03	Witness Direct Examination	Birchfield, Andy	Kessler, Dr. David M.D.	Pediatric Medicine	In Person
00:53:26	Break
01:13:21	Witness Direct Examination	Birchfield, Andy	Kessler, Dr. David M.D.	Pediatric Medicine	In Person
01:51:07	Witness Cross Examination	Brown, Allison	Kessler, Dr. David M.D.	Pediatric Medicine	In Person
02:17:28	End of Session

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination	Thompson, Margaret	Smith-Bindman, Dr. Rebecca MD	In Person
01:07:22	Break
01:27:33	Witness Direct Examination	Thompson, Margaret	Smith-Bindman, Dr. Rebecca MD	In Person
02:22:14	End of Session

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	Witness Direct Examination		Mann, Mr. Steven	Video Recording
01:19:09	Break
01:40:01	Witness Direct Examination		McKeegan, John	Video Recording
02:30:43	Witness Direct Examination	Birchfield, Andy	Newman, Dr. George PH.D	In Person
02:42:02	End of Session

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Witness Expertise	Presence
00:00:00	General Case Activities
00:42:32	Witness Direct Examination	Brown, Allison	Diette, Dr. Gregory	Pulmonology	In Person
01:24:59	Witness Cross Examination	Birchfield, Andy	Diette, Dr. Gregory	Pulmonology	In Person
02:01:49	Break
02:21:57	Witness Cross Examination	Birchfield, Andy	Diette, Dr. Gregory	Pulmonology	In Person
03:08:39	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Brown, Allison	Diette, Dr. Gregory	Pulmonology	In Person
03:12:15	Witness Re-Cross Examination	Birchfield, Andy	Diette, Dr. Gregory	Pulmonology	In Person
03:15:12	Witness Direct Examination		Hopkins, John		Video Recording
03:25:51	End of Session

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Witness Expertise	Presence
00:00:00	General Case Activities
00:09:12	Witness Cross Examination	O'Dell, Leigh	Saenz, Dr. Cheryl M.D.	Obstetrics & Gynecology	In Person
01:09:50	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Brown, Allison	Saenz, Dr. Cheryl M.D.	Obstetrics & Gynecology	In Person
01:29:18	Witness Re-Cross Examination	O'Dell, Leigh	Saenz, Dr. Cheryl M.D.	Obstetrics & Gynecology	In Person
01:34:21	Witness Direct Examination		Schultz, Zachary		Video Recording
01:38:17	Witness Direct Examination		Hopkins, John		Video Recording
01:54:45	Break
02:10:44	Witness Direct Examination		Mann, Mr. Steven		Video Recording
03:26:18	End of Session

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Presence
00:00:00	General Case Activities
00:12:33	Witness Direct Examination		Mann, Mr. Steven	Video Recording
00:20:05	Witness Cross Examination	O'Dell, Leigh	Kuffner, Dr. Edwin M.D.	In Person
01:06:10	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Brown, Allison	Kuffner, Dr. Edwin M.D.	In Person
01:34:45	End of Session

	Description	Attorney	Witness	Witness Expertise	Presence
00:00:00	General Case Activities
00:10:10	Witness Direct Examination	Huang, Kuan	Finan, Michael	Obstetrics & Gynecology	In Person
00:51:29	General Case Activities
00:57:18	Break
01:08:38	Witness Cross Examination	O'Dell, Leigh	Finan, Michael	Obstetrics & Gynecology	In Person
01:53:18	Witness Re-Direct Examination	Huang, Kuan	Finan, Michael	Obstetrics & Gynecology	In Person
01:58:20	General Case Activities
02:08:18	End of Session

	Description	Attorney
00:00:00	General Case Activities
00:08:25	Break
00:15:55	General Case Activities
00:36:25	Break
01:48:55	General Case Activities
02:25:53	Closing Statement	Birchfield, Andy
03:07:26	End of Session