Johnson & Johnson

Johnson & Johnson (J&J) is an American multinational pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical technologies corporation headquartered in New Brunswick, New Jersey.

The company operates 2 divisions: Innovative Medicine (64% of 2025 revenues) and MedTech (36% of 2025 revenues). and 42nd on the Forbes Global 2000.

Along with Microsoft, Johnson & Johnson is one of only two U.S.-based companies that has a prime credit rating of AAA from S&P Global.

Johnson & Johnson was founded in 1886 by three brothers, Robert Wood Johnson, James Wood Johnson, and Edward Mead Johnson, selling ready-to-use sterile surgical dressings. It developed some of the most recognizable healthcare products, including the first commercial first aid kit, maternity kits, baby powder, Band-Aids, Tylenol, and contact lens. It developed breakthrough treatments including RhoGAM for Rh incompatibility, HIV therapies, and the antidepressant Spravato (esketamine). The company has played major roles during public health crises including the Spanish flu and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Johnson & Johnson has faced significant lawsuits related to hip implant failures, Risperdal marketing claims, transvaginal mesh, and talc-related cancer cases.

History

1873–1885: Before Johnson & Johnson

Robert Wood Johnson began his professional training at age 16 as a pharmaceutical apprentice at an apothecary run by his mother's cousin, James G. Wood, in Poughkeepsie, New York. Johnson co-founded his own company with George J. Seabury in 1873. The New York-based Seabury & Johnson became known for its medicated plasters. There he heard Joseph Lister's explanation of a new procedure: antiseptic surgery.

They manufactured sterile surgical supplies, household products, and medical guides. Those products initially featured a logo that resembled the signature of James Wood Johnson. Robert Wood Johnson served as the first president of the company. and also manufactured the world's first sterile surgical products, including sutures, absorbent cotton, and gauze. The company published "Modern Methods of Antiseptic Wound Treatment", a guide on how to do sterile surgery using its products, and in 1888, distributed 85,000 copies to doctors and pharmacists across the United States. The manual was translated into three languages and distributed worldwide. Kilmer wrote "Hygiene in Maternity", an instructional guide for mothers before and after delivery. In 1904, the company expanded its baby care products with "Lister's Sanitary Diapers", a diaper product for infants.

During the Spanish–American War, Johnson & Johnson developed and donated 300,000 packaged compressed surgical dressings for soldiers in the field Women accounted for half of the company's workforce and led a quarter of its departments.

In 1916, the company acquired Chicopee Manufacturing Company in Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts, to meet demand. Named after its Massachusetts facility, Johnson & Johnson built a textile mill and company town, Chicopee, outside Gainesville, Georgia. In 1931, Johnson & Johnson introduced the first prescription contraceptive gel marketed as Ortho-Gynol. Both male and female Johnson & Johnson employees were drafted and enlisted during World War II. The company ensured no one would lose their job when they returned home.

Robert Wood Johnson II was appointed head of the Smaller War Plants Corporation in Washington, D.C. His work ensured U.S. factories with under 500 employees were awarded government contracts.

1943: Credo and IPO

In 1943, as the company was preparing for its initial public offering (IPO), Robert Wood Johnson wrote what the company called "Our Credo", a defining document that has been used to guide the company's decisions over the years.

The company became a public company via an initial public offering in 1944.

In 1943, Vesta Stoudt identified a need for waterproof tape for ammunition boxes in World War Two. She wrote to Franklin D. Roosevelt with the idea; the president commissioned Revolite, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson at the time, to develop and manufacture a cloth-based adhesive tape, later duct tape.

1944–1999: Acquisitions and international expansion

thumb|Variation of logo used from the company's establishment until September 14, 2023.

In 1944, the company began selling Johnson's Baby Lotion. The same year, the company established Ethicon Suture Laboratories. In 1947, G. F. Merson Ltd. was acquired to expand the company's suture business in the United Kingdom. The company was rebranded and absorbed into Ethicon.

Johnson & Johnson chairman of the board, Robert Wood Johnson, published Or Forfeit Freedom, in 1947. The book outlined that businesses need to develop sustainable methods of using natural resources for the future of business and the planet.

In 1955, Ethicon developed a micro-point reverse-cutting ophthalmic needle attached to the suture. Micro-point surgical needles and sutures allowed for advances in modern vision surgery.

In 1956, the company opened its first Asia-based operating company in the Philippines.

A year later, the company sold Tylenol for the first time without a prescription.

In 1963, Philip B. Hofmann succeeded Robert Wood Johnson as chairman and CEO. He was the first non-Johnson family member to become chief executive. Hofmann also helped found the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

In 1965, Johnson & Johnson acquired Codman & Shurtleff. The acquired company produced neurovascular devices and neurosurgery technologies. In 1968, the company developed the RhoGAM vaccine. The vaccine prevented Rh hemolytic disease in newborns.

In 1969, Ortho Diagnostics, a company subsidiary, launched the Sickledex Tube Test for detecting anemia. The same year, the FDA approved the Johnson & Johnson arterial graft. In 1971, the company launched Hapindex Diagnostic Test, a rapid hepatitis B test for blood donors. The test was developed to prevent the spread of hepatitis B through blood transfusions.

In the 1970s, Johnson & Johnson hired Henry N. Cobb from Pei Cobb Freed & Partners to design its new headquarters. The firm designed Johnson & Johnson Plaza across the railroad tracks from the older section of the Johnson & Johnson campus.

In 1973, Richard Sellars became chairman and CEO of Johnson & Johnson.

In 1976, James E. Burke became the company's chairman and CEO.

Johnson & Johnson opened operating companies in China and Egypt in 1985.

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Johnson & Johnson expanded into eastern Europe. By 1991, the company had a presence in Hungary, Russia, the Czech Republic, and Poland. In the 1990s, the company acquired Clean & Clear, Neutrogena, Motrin, and Aveeno.

In 1997, Johnson & Johnson acquired Biosense Webster, based in Haifa.

DePuy was acquired by Johnson & Johnson in 1998 for $3.5 billion.

2000–2019

William C. Weldon was appointed chairman and CEO of the company in 2002.

In 2003, Ethicon launched Vicryl Plus Antibacterial Sutures. The products prevent post-surgery infection within stitches. In 2006, Johnson & Johnson acquired Pfizer's consumer healthcare business and merged it with its consumer healthcare business group. The acquisition added brands like Listerine, Bengay, and Neosporin to the company's portfolio. In the same year, Johnson & Johnson's Janssen Pharmaceuticals, launched Prezista, a protease inhibitor for patients with failed previous HIV therapies.

In October 2008, the company acquired HealthMedia, later renamed to Health & Wellness Solutions and the Human Performance Institute.

In December 2008, Johnson & Johnson acquired Mentor Corporation for $1 billion and merged its operations into Ethicon.

In October 2010, J&J acquired Crucell for $2.4 billion. The subsidiary operates as the centre for vaccines, within Johnson & Johnson pharmaceuticals business group.

In April 2012, Alex Gorsky became chairman and CEO of Johnson & Johnson.

In November 2015, Biosense Webster acquired Coherex Medical, expanding the company's range of treatment options for patients with atrial fibrillation.

In February 2017, Johnson & Johnson acquired Abbott Medical Optics from Abbott Laboratories for $4.325 billion, adding the new division into Johnson & Johnson Vision.

In June 2017, Johnson & Johnson acquired Actelion in a $30 billion deal, the largest ever purchase by the company. After the purchase, Johnson & Johnson spun off Actelion's research and development unit into a separate legal entity.

In August 2017, Johnson & Johnson Vision acquired TearScience.

In September 2017, the company acquired subscription-based contact lens startup Sightbox.

In September 2018, Johnson & Johnson Medical GmbH acquired Emerging Implant Technologies GmbH, manufacturer of 3D-printed titanium interbody implants for spinal fusion surgery.

In March 2019, the FDA approved esketamine for the treatment of severe depression, which is marketed as Spravato by Janssen Pharmaceuticals.

In 2019, Johnson & Johnson began production of photochromic contact lenses. The lenses adjust to sunlight and help eyes recover from bright light exposure faster. The lenses contain a photochromic additive that adapts visible light amounts filtered to the eyes and are the first to use such additives.

2020: COVID-19 pandemic

Johnson & Johnson committed over $1 billion toward the development of the not-for-profit Janssen COVID-19 vaccine in partnership with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Janssen Vaccines, in partnership with Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), developed the Janssen COVID-19 vaccine based on the same technology used to make its Ebola vaccine.

In response to the shortage of ventilators, Ethicon, with Prisma Health, made and distributed the VESper Ventilator Expansion Splitter, which uses 3D printing technology, to allow one ventilator to support two patients.

In August 2020, the Federal government of the United States agreed to pay more than $1 billion to Johnson & Johnson for the production of 100 million doses of the Janssen COVID-19 vaccine. Johnson & Johnson and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) began clinical trials of J&J's vaccine in September 2020.

In September 2020, Johnson & Johnson started its 60,000-person phase 3 adenovirus-based vaccine trial. The trial was paused on October 12, 2020, because a volunteer became ill, but the company said it found no evidence that the vaccine had caused the illness and announced on October 23, 2020, that it would resume the trial.

2020-present

In November 2020, Johnson & Johnson acquired Momenta Pharmaceuticals for $6.5 billion.

In January 2022, Joaquin Duato became CEO of Johnson & Johnson.

In December 2022, Johnson & Johnson acquired cardiovascular medical technology company Abiomed for $16.6 billion.

Kenvue, the consumer products division of Johnson & Johnson that owned Neutrogena, Aveeno, Tylenol, Listerine, Johnson's, Band-Aid and other brands became a public company via an initial public offering in May 2023. At that time, Johnson & Johnson maintained a controlling stake of around 91%. In July 2023, Johnson & Johnson launched an exchange offer to split-off Kenvue, reducing its stake to 9.5%. In 2024, Johnson & Johnson sold its remaining 9.5% stake in Kenvue.

Johnson & Johnson holds a patent on the tuberculosis-treating drug bedaquiline, with secondary patents in at least 25 out of 43 countries with a high burden of tuberculosis blocking affordable generic versions of the drug, preventing millions of people from accessing the life-saving treatment. Though the patent was set to expire in many countries in 2023, Johnson & Johnson applied to extend the patent. In July 2023, Stop TB Partnership announced that after negotiations with Johnson & Johnson, it had been granted licenses to produce generic versions of the drug.

Johnson & Johnson acquired Ambrx Biopharma for $2 billion in January 2024, Shockwave Medical for $13.1 billion in April 2024, and Proteologix for $850 million in May 2024.

In June 2024, Johnson & Johnson MedTech released Polyphonic, a digital surgical platform. The platform features surgery planning, surgical video, and telepresence services for laparoscopic surgeries.

In April 2025, Johnson & Johnson acquired Intra-Cellular Therapies, a company specializing in medications for behavioral disorders, including schizophrenia, depression, and bipolar disorder, for $14.6 billion.

In November 2025, the company acquired Halda Therapeutics for $3.05 billion.

In April 2026, the company acquired Atraverse Medical.

Chairmen history

Robert Wood Johnson I (1887–1910)
James Wood Johnson (1910–1932)
Robert Wood Johnson II (1932–1963)
Philip B. Hofmann (1963–1973)
Richard B. Sellars (1973–1976)
James E. Burke (1976–1989)
Ralph S. Larsen (1989–2002)
William C. Weldon (2002–2012)
Alex Gorsky (2012–2022)
Joaquin Duato (2023–present)

Business segments

The company's business is divided into two business segments: Innovative Medicine and MedTech.

Johnson & Johnson Innovation, LLC (JJI) is a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson. JJI focuses on early-stage, life science, and technology innovations to advance the company's research and development pipeline. JJI provides startups with sourcing, infrastructure, and capital equipment at JLABS, financing & venture capital at JJDC, Inc., and collaborations leading to the potential development of medical device technologies, pharmaceuticals, and therapeutics. There are 4 JJI Innovation Centers located in London, Shanghai, Boston (Cambridge), and the San Francisco Bay Area. There are 13 JLABS incubators located in the Bay Area (San Francisco and South San Francisco), Belgium (Beerse), Boston (Cambridge and Lowell), Houston (TMC), New York City, Philadelphia, San Diego, Shanghai, Toronto, and Washington, D.C.!! MedTech

|Immunology Cardiovascular & metabolic disease Pulmonary hypertension Infectious diseases & vaccines Neuroscience Oncology||Interventional solutions Orthopaedics Surgery (general & advanced) Vision

Innovative Medicine

The Innovative Medicine (formerly known as pharmaceuticals) segment is focused on six therapeutic areas: immunology (rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease and psoriasis); infectious diseases (HIV/AIDS); neuroscience (mood disorders, neurodegenerative disorders and schizophrenia); oncology (solid tumours including lung cancer, prostate cancer and bladder cancer, and hematologic malignancies); cardiovascular, metabolism, retina (thrombosis and diabetes), and pulmonary hypertension (pulmonary arterial hypertension).

!Region

!share

|United States

|56.63%

|Europe

|22.76%

|Asia-Pacific, Africa

|15.3%

|Western Hemisphere (without US)

|5.31%

Financials

{| class="wikitable float-left" style="text-align: right;"

!Year

!Revenue in million US$

!Net income in million US$

!Employees

|2005

|50,514

|10,060

|115,600

|2006

|53,324

|11,053

|122,200

|2007

|61,095

|10,576

|119,200

|2008

|63,747

|12,949

|118,700

|2009

|61,897

|12,266

|115,500

|2010

|61,587

|13,334

|114,000

|2011

|65,030

|9,672

|117,900

|2012

|67,224

|10,853

|127,600

|2013

|71,312

|13,831

|128,100

|2014

|74,331

|16,323

|126,500

|2015

|70,074

|15,409

|127,100

|2016

|71,890

|16,540

|126,400

|2017

|76,450

|1,300

|155,000

|2018

|81,581

|15,297

|134,000

|2019

|82,059

|15,119

|132,200

|2020

|82,584

|14,714

|134,500

|2021

|93,775

|20,878

|141,700

|2022

|79,990

|17,941

|155,800

|2023

|85,159

|35,153

|131,900

|2024

|88,821

|14,066

|138,100

|2025

|94,193

|26,804

|138,200

Board of directors

The members of the board of directors of Johnson & Johnson are:

Joaquin Duato
Mary Beckerle
Jennifer Doudna
Marillyn Hewson
Paula Johnson
Hubert Joly
Mark McClellan
John Morikis
Daniel Pinto
Mark Weinberger
Nadja West
Eugene Woods

Environmental record

In 2017, Johnson & Johnson was ranked 10th on the "Green Rankings" by Newsweek.

In 2020, the company agreed to spend $800 million to change its packaging to make it more sustainable by using only recyclable, reusable or compostable plastic, and recycled paper and pulp-based packaging.

Johnson & Johnson operates a 75 kilowatt solar electric system in Spring House, Pennsylvania.

Independent climate-data platforms show that most of Johnson & Johnson’s emissions come from its supply chain rather than from its own buildings. Tracenable and DitchCarbon estimate that "purchased goods and services" – the production of medicines, medical devices and packaging that J&J buys – accounts for about 72% of its Scope 3 emissions, roughly 4.8 million metric tons of CO₂e per year. This matches wider health-care research finding that about 70% of the sector’s climate footprint is embedded in global supply chains for drugs, equipment and other goods.

Contributions

Johnson & Johnson has provided funding to nonprofit organizations including the Institute for Advanced Study, the Human Rights Campaign, Women Deliver, the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health (FNIH), the Pandemic Action Network, and the C. D. Howe Institute.

Recalls and litigation

1982 Chicago Tylenol murders

On September 29, 1982, a "Tylenol scare" began when the first of seven individuals died in Chicago metropolitan area, after ingesting Extra Strength Tylenol that had been deliberately laced with cyanide. The incident led to reforms in the packaging of over-the-counter substances and to federal anti-tampering laws. The case remains unsolved and no suspects have been charged. Johnson & Johnson's quick response, including a nationwide recall, was widely praised by public relations experts and the media and was the gold standard for corporate crisis management.

2010 children's product recall

In April 2010, McNeil Consumer Healthcare, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, voluntarily recalled 43 over-the-counter children's medicines, including Tylenol, Tylenol Plus, Motrin, Zyrtec and Benadryl. The recall was conducted after a routine inspection at a manufacturing facility in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania, United States, revealed that some "products may not fully meet the required manufacturing specifications". Products shipped to Canada, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Guam, Guatemala, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Panama, Trinidad and Tobago, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Fiji were included in the recall.

Pathologically, the failing prosthesis had several effects. Metal debris from wear of the implant led to a reaction that destroyed the soft tissues surrounding the joint, leaving some patients with long term disability. Ions of cobalt and chromiumthe metals from which the implant was madewere also released into the blood and cerebrospinal fluid in some patients.

In March 2013, a jury in Los Angeles ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay more than $8.3million in damages to a Montana man in the first related case.

The issue was estimated to affect 8,000 patients in the U.S. In November 2013, the company announced a settlement of the issue in the U.S., estimating a cost of $2.5 billion.

2010 Tylenol recall

In 2010 and 2011, Johnson & Johnson voluntarily recalled some over-the-counter products, including Tylenol, due to an odor caused by 2,4,6-Tribromoanisole, which was used to treat wooden pallets on which product packaging materials were transported and stored.

Shareholders lawsuit

In 2010, a group of shareholders sued the board for allegedly failing to take action to prevent serious failings and illegalities since the 1990s, including manufacturing problems, bribing officials, covering up adverse effects and misleading marketing for unapproved uses. In 2012, Johnson and Johnson proposed a settlement with the shareholders, whereby the company would institute new oversight, quality and compliance procedures binding for five years.

Illegal marketing of Risperdal

In November 2013, Johnson & Johnson agreed to pay $2.2 billion to resolve criminal and civil liability arising from allegations relating to Risperdal, Invega, and Natrecor, including promotion for uses not approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and payment of kickbacks to physicians and to long-term care pharmacy providers. The settlement amount includes criminal fines and forfeiture totaling $485 million and civil settlements with the federal government and states totaling $1.72 billion. States that have awarded damages include Texas ($158million), South Carolina ($327million), Louisiana ($258million), and Arkansas ($1.2billion).

In 2010, the United States Department of Justice joined a whistleblowers suit accusing the company of illegally marketing Risperdal through Omnicare, the largest company supplying pharmaceuticals to nursing homes. The allegations include that J&J were warned by the FDA to not promote Risperdal as effective and safe for elderly patients, but it did so, and that it paid Omnicare to promote the drug to care home physicians. The settlement was finalized on November 4, 2013, with J&J agreeing to pay a penalty of around $2.2billion, "including criminal fines and forfeiture totaling $485million and civil settlements with the federal government and states totaling $1.72billion".

Johnson & Johnson has also been subject to congressional investigations related to payments given to psychiatrists to promote its products and ghost write articles, notably Joseph Biederman and his pediatric bipolar disorder research unit.

Foreign bribery

In 2011, J&J settled litigation brought by the US Securities and Exchange Commission under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and paid around $70M in disgorgement and fines. J&J's employees had given kickbacks and bribes to doctors in Greece, Poland, and Romania to obtain business selling drugs and medical devices and had bribed officials in Iraq to win contracts under the Oil for Food program. J&J fully cooperated with the investigation once the problems came to light.

Consumer fraud settlements

In May 2017, J&J reached an agreement to pay $33million to several states to settle consumer fraud allegations in some of the company's over-the-counter drugs.

Use of the Red Cross symbol

thumb|150px|Flag of the [[Red Cross]]

Johnson & Johnson registered the Red Cross as a U.S. trademark for "medicinal and surgical plasters" in 1905 and has used the design since 1887. The Geneva Conventions, which reserved the Red Cross emblem for specific uses, were first approved in 1864 and ratified by the United States in 1882. However, the emblem was not protected by U.S. law for the use of the American Red Cross (ARC) and the U.S. military until after Johnson & Johnson had obtained its trademark. A clause in this law (now 18 U.S.C. 706) permits this pre-existing use of the Red Cross to continue.

A declaration made by the U.S. upon its ratification of the 1949 Geneva Conventions includes a reservation that pre-1905 U.S. domestic uses of the Red Cross, such as Johnson & Johnson's, would remain lawful as long as the cross is not used on "aircraft, vessels, vehicles, buildings or other structures, or upon the ground", i.e., uses which could be confused with its military uses. This means that the U.S. did not agree to any interpretation of the 1949 Geneva Conventions that would overrule Johnson & Johnson's trademark. The American Red Cross continues to recognize the validity of Johnson & Johnson's trademark.

In August 2007, Johnson & Johnson filed a lawsuit against the American Red Cross, demanding that the charity halt the use of the red cross symbol on products it sells to the public, though the company takes no issue with the charity's use of the mark for nonprofit purposes. In May 2008, the judge in the case dismissed most of Johnson & Johnson's claims, and, a month later, the two organizations settled the case, allowing both parties to use the symbol.

Boston Scientific lawsuits

Since 2003, Johnson & Johnson and Boston Scientific have both claimed that the other had infringed on their patents covering heart stent medical devices. The litigation was settled when Boston Scientific agreed to pay $716million to Johnson & Johnson in September 2009 and an additional $1.73billion in February 2010. Their dispute was renewed in 2014, now on the grounds of a contract dispute.

Humira patent-infringement case against Abbott

In 2007, Johnson & Johnson sued Abbott Laboratories over the development and sale of Humira, claiming Abbott used technology licensed exclusively to Johnson & Johnson's Centocor division. Johnson & Johnson won the court case, and in 2009 Abbott was ordered to pay Johnson & Johnson $1.17billion in lost revenues and $504million in royalties. The judge also added $175.6million in interest to bring the total to $1.84billion, at the time the largest patent-infringement award in U.S. history. In 2010, Abbott appealed the verdict and in 2011, it won the appeal. The United States Supreme Court elected not to hear the case.

Vaginal mesh implants

Tens of thousands of women worldwide have taken legal action against Johnson & Johnson after suffering serious complications following a vaginal mesh implant procedure. In Australia, more than 700 women began a class action against the company in the Federal Court of Australia in 2017, telling the court they "suffered irreparable, debilitating pain after the devices began to erode into surrounding tissue and organs, causing infections and complications". The class action alleged that Johnson & Johnson, which "aggressively marketed" the implants "failed to properly warn patients and surgeons of the risk, or test the devices adequately". Emails between executives show the company was aware of the risks in 2005 but still went ahead and made the product available. In November 2019 the Federal Court of Australia found Johnson & Johnson negligent. The judgment was appealed, with the appeals court upholding all findings of Justice Anna Katzmann. Ethicon then sought a High Court decision but this was not permitted by the High Court of Australia. Subsequently (September 2022) a A$300,000,000 compensation agreement was reached between Shine Lawyers and J&J but this agreement remains subject to approval by the Federal Court of Australia.

Cancer links to talc-based baby powder

Johnson & Johnson has been the subject of over 60,000 lawsuits claiming that its baby powder causes ovarian cancer. The lawsuits focus on claims that the talc-based powder is contaminated with asbestos, a known carcinogen commonly found in places where talc is mined.

In 2016, J&J was ordered to pay $72million in damages to the family of Jacqueline Fox, a 62-year-old woman who died of ovarian cancer in 2015. The company said it would appeal. A year later, over 1,000 U.S. women had sued J&J for covering up the possible cancer risk from its Baby Powder product. The company says that 70% of its Baby Powder is used by adults. Later that year, a California jury ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay $417million to a woman who claimed she developed ovarian cancer after using the company's talc-based products like Johnson's Baby Powder for feminine hygiene. The verdict included $70million in compensatory damages and $347million in punitive damages. J&J said it would appeal the verdict. The Missouri Eastern District appeals court later negated a $72million jury verdict in the Jacqueline Fox lawsuit, ruling it lacked jurisdiction in Missouri because of a U.S. Supreme Court decision that imposed limits on where injury lawsuit can be filed. Subsequently, this ruling killed three other recent St. Louis jury verdicts of more than $200million combined. Fox, 62, of Birmingham, Alabama, died in 2015, about four months before her trial was held in St. Louis Circuit Court. She was among 65 plaintiffs, of whom only two were from Missouri.

A St. Louis jury awarded nearly $4.7billion in damages to 22 women and their families in 2018 after they claimed that asbestos in Johnson & Johnson talcum powder caused their ovarian cancer. In August, J&J said that it removed several chemicals from baby powder products and re-engineered them to make consumers more confident that products were safer for children. The company was forced to release internal documents with 11,700 people suing J&J over cancers allegedly caused by baby powder. The documents showed that the company had known about asbestos contamination since at least as early as 1971 and had spent decades finding ways to conceal the evidence from the public.

The company lost its request to reverse a jury verdict that ruled in favor of the accusers, which required the company to pay $4.14billion in punitive damages and $550million in compensatory damages. A large study performed in 2003 found that ovarian cancer risk increased from a baseline of 0.0121% to 0.0161% in people who reported regularly using talc in the genital area. Two more studies over the next twelve years, which also relied on self-reporting, had similar results; however, none of the three studies showed a relationship between how long someone used talc and how much their cancer risk increased, which is expected in experiments with carcinogens and other toxic substances (see dose–response relationship).

Conversely, a St. Louis jury ruled in favor of Johnson & Johnson in the case of a single plaintiff who had used the company's talc-containing baby powder for thirty years with a similar claim. The company's CEO, Alex Gorsky, declined to appear at a United States congressional hearing on the safety of J&J's Baby Powder and other talc-based cosmetics. J&J spokesman Ernie Knewitz said that the subcommittee had rejected the company's offers to send a talc testing expert or a J&J executive in charge of consumer products. In response to declining demand, J&J announced it would discontinue the sale of talc-based baby powder in the United States and Canada in 2020, but would continue to sell it in other markets. In a statement, the company said that the existing retail inventory of the talc-based powder will sell until it runs out, while the company's corn starch-based baby powder will continue to sell in the United States and Canada.

The Supreme Court of Missouri refused to consider J&J's appeal of a $2.12 billion damages award to women who blamed their ovarian cancer on its talc-based products.

The Supreme Court of the United States also refused to consider an appeal from J&J, leaving in place a judgment from a state appeal court that had cut the original award to $2.1 billion. Two of the justices had to recuse: Samuel Alito because either he and/or his wife owning or recently owning stock in J&J, and Brett Kavanaugh, whose father led an industry group lobbying against safety warnings on talc products. Representing the affected women during the trial, W. Mark Lanier remarked that the Supreme Court's decision sent "a clear message to the rich and powerful: You will be held to account when you cause grievous harm under our system of equal justice under law." J&J had argued that the combined claims in the St. Louis trial were too different, yet the short jury deliberation and identical payouts were, therefore, a violation of the company's due process and also that the high punitive award was unconstitutional. The cases were dismissed as bad-faith filings.

The company announced that it would stop making talc-based powder by 2023 and replace it with cornstarch-based powders. The company says the talc-based powder is safe to use and does not contain asbestos.

Lawsuits showed connections between Johnson & Johnson and the Holmesburg Prison experiments.

In 2023, the number of lawsuits regarding talc-based baby powder exceeded 40,000 as more claimants came forward to say that the company's product caused them to have cancer. Johnson & Johnson offered $9 billion to settle all the lawsuits against the company, up from the previous figure of $2 billion.

In February 2025, as the number of talc-based powder related lawsuits sat at over 62,000, Johnson & Johnson offered a settlement of $10 billion to end litigation, funded by a subsidiary's filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. In April 2025, a judge rejected the bankruptcy and thereby rejected the offer. The company then said it would "return to the tort system to litigate and defeat these meritless talc claims"

In October 2025, a Los Angeles court ordered J&J to pay $966 million to the family of a woman who died from mesothelioma in 2021. The ruling came days after a South Carolina court rejected a lawsuit of a man that similarly claimed asbestos fibers in baby powder caused his cancer. J&J called the ruling unconstitutional and said it would appeal. Since this ruling, J&J has seen a 17% rise in talc cancer related suits.

In December 2025, a jury awarded $40 million to women who said talc was to blame for cancer.

Opioid epidemic

By 2018, the company had become embroiled in the opioid epidemic in the United States and had become a target of lawsuits.

In Idaho, J&J is part of a lawsuit accusing the company for being partially to blame for opioid-related overdose deaths. The first major trial began in Oklahoma in May 2019. On August 26, 2019, the Oklahoma judge ordered J&J to pay $572million for its part in the opioid crisis, and in October J&J paid $20.4million to two Ohio counties fighting the opioid epidemic. In January 2022, Johnson & Johnson agreed to pay up to $5 billion as part of a $26 billion settlement which included McKesson, AmerisourceBergen, and Cardinal Health. Had the states gone to court, the companies could have faced up to $95 billion in penalties.

Northeastern Ohio settlement

In October 2019, the company agreed to a settlement of $20.4million with northeastern Ohio's most populous counties of Cuyahoga (containing Cleveland) and Summit (Akron). The settlement allows the company avoidance of a trial accusing J&J and many other pharmaceutical manufacturers of helping to spark the US opioid epidemic. The trial was thought to be an indicator for thousands of opioid-related lawsuits against many drug manufacturers. The arrangement, which contains no admission of liability by the company, provides the counties $10million in cash, $5million for legal expenses and $5.4million in contributions to opioid-related nonprofit organizations in the counties.

References

External links