Talcum powder (Johnson & Johnson baby powder) lawsuit

The docket record

Full docket title: IN RE: Johnson & Johnson Talcum Powder Products Marketing, Sales Practices and Products Liability Litigation. Programmatic record page: MDL 2738.

Where it stands

As of the JPML's September 1, 2026 report, 69,250 actions are pending in MDL 2738 before Judge Michael A. Shipp in the District of New Jersey, up 336 in one month. This MDL centralizes federal claims that J&J talc products caused ovarian cancer; a related but largely separate track of mesothelioma claims tied to alleged asbestos contamination has moved mostly through state courts and individual trials rather than the federal MDL. J&J tried three times, in 2021, 2023, and 2024-2025, to resolve the ovarian cancer claims through a subsidiary bankruptcy (the 'Texas Two-Step,' via LTL Management and then Red River Talc LLC). On March 31, 2025, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez denied confirmation of the third plan and dismissed the case, finding J&J did not belong in bankruptcy. The case returned to the tort system. On July 22, 2026, the MDL court ordered plaintiffs to show cause why ovarian cancer claims should not be dismissed for inability to prove individual ('specific') causation, after plaintiffs' counsel withdrew their specific-causation experts in two bellwether cases. Five days later, on July 27, 2026, J&J announced a proposed $5.5 billion settlement of roughly 76,000 ovarian cancer claims, conditioned on at least 95% of remaining claimants participating; the first payment (up to $3 billion) would not occur before 2027, with no further payments due before 2028. The proposal is not a finalized, court-approved settlement as of this writing; Judge Shipp held a hearing on August 3, 2026 on how the bellwether process and participation calculations will proceed, and a final pretrial conference remains on the calendar for November 5, 2026. No MDL 2738 bellwether trial has produced a plaintiff verdict as of this writing.

Sources: Johnson & Johnson Announces a Proposed Resolution of Ovar… · Pending MDL Dockets by Actions Pending, September 1, 2026 · Johnson & Johnson Talcum Powder Litigation (MDL 2738) · Court Rejects Johnson & Johnson's Latest Bankruptcy Maneu…; full list at the end of this page.

What the lawsuits are about

Johnson's Baby Powder and related J&J talc-based body powders are the products at issue. Plaintiffs allege in two distinct sets of claims: (1) that perineal or genital use of talc-based powder is associated with a higher risk of ovarian cancer, and (2) that the talc used in the products was contaminated with asbestos, causing mesothelioma. J&J denies both causal claims and has said independent testing did not find asbestos in its talc. J&J stopped selling talc-based Baby Powder in the U.S. and Canada in 2020 and worldwide in 2023, replacing it with a cornstarch-based formula.

The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation centralized federal talc injury lawsuits into MDL 2738, 'IN RE: Johnson & Johnson Talcum Powder Products Marketing, Sales Practices and Products Liability Litigation,' in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey on October 4, 2016, initially before Judge Freda L. Wolfson. Judge Michael A. Shipp now presides, with Magistrate Judge Rukhsanah L. Singh handling pretrial matters. Because talc claims involve two different injuries with different causation questions, ovarian cancer and mesothelioma claims have generally proceeded on separate tracks, with mesothelioma cases more often litigated to individual trial (largely in state courts) and ovarian cancer claims concentrated in the federal MDL alongside coordinated state-court proceedings.

Beginning in 2021, J&J attempted three times to move talc liability into a subsidiary and then into Chapter 11 bankruptcy, first as LTL Management LLC and later as Red River Talc LLC, a maneuver critics call the 'Texas Two-Step.' Each attempt was dismissed by bankruptcy courts; the third and final dismissal came March 31, 2025, when Judge Christopher Lopez in the Southern District of Texas rejected the Red River Talc plan and sent the case back to the tort system. With bankruptcy off the table, the MDL court moved toward resolving the causation issue directly: a July 22, 2026 show-cause order questioned plaintiffs' ability to prove specific causation in two ovarian cancer bellwether cases, and on July 27, 2026, J&J announced a proposed $5.5 billion settlement of roughly 76,000 remaining ovarian cancer claims, contingent on 95% claimant participation and still working through court process as of September 2026.

Injuries named in the filings

• Ovarian cancer (following perineal/genital talc powder use)
• Mesothelioma (alleged asbestos contamination of talc)

Principal defendants: Johnson & Johnson; LTL Management LLC / Red River Talc LLC (J&J talc-liability subsidiaries).

Sources: Johnson & Johnson Announces a Proposed Resolution of Ovar… · Pending MDL Dockets by Actions Pending, September 1, 2026 · Johnson & Johnson Talcum Powder Litigation (MDL 2738) · Court Rejects Johnson & Johnson's Latest Bankruptcy Maneu…; full list at the end of this page.

Who the filings say qualifies

Eligibility criteria below are drawn from the JPML's transfer order defining the MDL 2738 case pool and from J&J's July 27, 2026 announcement of the proposed ovarian cancer resolution, which describes the claims it is meant to cover. The court has not certified a class; each case is an individual lawsuit or claim, and the proposed settlement is not yet final.

• Diagnosed with ovarian cancer (or, on the separate mesothelioma track, with mesothelioma) that the claimant attributes to use of J&J talc-based powder products
• Alleged regular or repeated use of a J&J talc-based powder product (for ovarian cancer claims, typically perineal/genital application) prior to diagnosis
• Claim not previously resolved, released, or barred by a state statute of limitations (limitations periods vary by state)
• For the proposed July 2026 ovarian cancer resolution specifically: claim currently pending in the MDL or a coordinated state-court proceeding and represented by counsel participating in the settlement negotiation; the framework is conditioned on at least 95% of remaining claimants opting to participate, and final terms, claim values, and administration procedures had not been court-approved as of September 2026

Source: Johnson & Johnson press release, 'Johnson & Johnson Announces a Proposed Resolution of Ovarian Talc Litigation' (July 27, 2026).

These are the criteria in the public record, not a promise about any individual case. A law firm evaluates each case on its own facts, and limitations periods vary by state.

Key dates

1. October 4, 2016JPML centralizes federal talc injury lawsuits into MDL 2738 in the District of New Jersey, initially before Judge Freda L. Wolfson. source
2. February 13, 2024MDL court issues a case management order addressing procedures for failure to timely serve plaintiff profile forms (amended July 10, 2024). source
3. September 1, 2024J&J subsidiary Red River Talc LLC files its third talc-liability bankruptcy petition, in the Southern District of Texas. source
4. March 31, 2025Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez denies confirmation of the Red River Talc plan and dismisses the case, ending J&J's third bankruptcy attempt and returning claims to the tort system. source
5. July 22, 2026MDL court (Magistrate Judge Singh) orders ovarian cancer plaintiffs to show cause why claims should not be dismissed for inability to establish specific causation, after plaintiffs withdraw specific-causation experts in two bellwether cases. source
6. July 27, 2026J&J announces a proposed $5.5 billion resolution of roughly 76,000 remaining ovarian cancer talc claims, conditioned on 95% claimant participation; first payment (up to $3 billion) not due before 2027. source
7. August 3, 2026Judge Shipp holds a hearing on how the bellwether process and 95% participation calculation will proceed given the proposed settlement. source
8. September 1, 2026JPML report shows 69,250 actions pending in MDL 2738, up 336 in one month. source

Questions people ask

Sources: Johnson & Johnson Announces a Proposed Resolution of Ovar… · Pending MDL Dockets by Actions Pending, September 1, 2026 · Johnson & Johnson Talcum Powder Litigation (MDL 2738) · Court Rejects Johnson & Johnson's Latest Bankruptcy Maneu…; full list at the end of this page.

Track this docket

We re-read the JPML report on the first business day of each month. Get an email when this record changes: case count, status, or a settlement development.

Sources

1. U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, “Pending MDL Dockets by Actions Pending,” monthly reports January 2, 2024 to September 1, 2026. Transferee court: District of New Jersey, Michael A. Shipp.
2. Johnson & Johnson Announces a Proposed Resolution of Ovarian Talc Litigation, Johnson & Johnson. Accessed September 3, 2026.
3. Pending MDL Dockets by Actions Pending, September 1, 2026, U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation. Accessed September 3, 2026.
4. Johnson & Johnson Talcum Powder Litigation (MDL 2738), U.S. District Court, District of New Jersey. Accessed September 3, 2026.
5. Court Rejects Johnson & Johnson's Latest Bankruptcy Maneuver in Talc Litigation, Levin Papantonio Rafferty (plaintiff-side law firm; litigation history summary). Accessed September 3, 2026.
6. J&J settles talc ovarian cancer lawsuits with $5.5 billion deal, Missouri Lawyers Media. Accessed September 3, 2026.
7. Johnson & Johnson agrees to $5.5B settlement over talc cancer claims, Fox Business. Accessed September 3, 2026.
8. Johnson & Johnson offers $5.5bn to settle talc cancer lawsuits, Al Jazeera. Accessed September 3, 2026.
9. Johnson & Johnson agrees to $5.5B settlement to resolve ovarian cancer talc lawsuits, Top Class Actions. Accessed September 3, 2026.
10. Newark: Judge Michael A. Shipp Holds 68,435 Talc Cases; J&J Offers $5.5B, Hearing Aug. 3, Litigation Sentinel. Accessed September 3, 2026.
11. Johnson & Johnson plans $5.5B talc litigation deal (JNJ 8-K Filing), StockTitan (SEC 8-K filing summary). Accessed September 3, 2026.
12. Talc Powder Lawsuit MDL 2738 PreTrial Orders & CMOs, Nigh Goldenberg Raso & Vaughn PLLC (plaintiff-side law firm; case management order index). Accessed September 3, 2026.
13. Talcum Powder Lawsuit Update & Timeline, Drugwatch (plaintiff-side informational site; summarized allegations and verdict history only). Accessed September 3, 2026.

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