J&J said to boost offer to settle baby powder lawsuits to over $8.2B

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) has raised its offer to settle thousands of lawsuits alleging its baby powder caused cancer to over $8.2B, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg, compared to its previous proposal of $6.5B.

Claimants may receive bigger payouts and about $650M for legal fees under the new terms, the sources added. Settlement talks are ongoing.

J&J (JNJ) maintains that the talc-based powders – which have been removed from shelves – never caused cancer.

The company recently secured the support of more than 75% of claimants in the baby powder-related lawsuits for an out-of-court deal.

If more claimants support the deal, it would help J&J (JNJ) quickly move ahead with the bankruptcy process to confine liability to a subsidiary set up to resolve the legal actions. Its latest Chapter 11 case could be filed in the coming days, according to the report.

J&J (JNJ) also resolved 95% of claims that its baby powder was tainted with asbestos and caused mesothelioma, a type of cancer in the tissue that lines the lungs, heart and other organs.

The company’s decision to raise its settlement offer would bring the total amount it has agreed to pay, or already paid, to resolve baby powder-related lawsuits to over $13.4B.