Missouri Trial Derailed by the Supreme Court Ruling

Posted on June 19th, 2017

On June 19, 2017, the sixth talcum powder trial began brought by three plaintiffs Shawn Blaes (Missouri resident), Angela Dawn Hershman (Virginia resident) and Eron Evans (Texas resident) who died of ovarian cancer after using J&J’s talc-containing products.

On the same day, in a case involving the blood thinner Plavix (Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. v. Superior Court of California), the Supreme Court ruled that non-California residents couldn’t join a California state court mass action against the drug maker. Under such circumstances, Johnson & Johnson argued that plaintiffs who reside outside of Missouri should not be allowed to bring claims in under the Bristol-Myers ruling.

The Missouri Judge Rex Burlison in the sixth trial against Johnson & Johnson declared a mistrial.

The next talc trial is slated to start on July 10 in California state court. It will be the first in a coordinated proceeding involving hundreds of plaintiffs.

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