News US government moves to block J&J talc bankruptcy resolution

The US Department of Justice (DoJ) has filed a motion to dismiss Johnson & Johnson’s latest attempt to use the bankruptcy court to settle tens of thousands of lawsuits claiming its talc products caused people’s cancers.

In September, J&J announced that approximately 83% of claimants in current lawsuits supported its proposal to resolve ongoing and future lawsuits through bankruptcy proceedings of its subsidiary, Red River Talc, which was created explicitly for this purpose. This exceeds the 75% approval threshold required by US bankruptcy law to allow the deal to go ahead. However, the DoJ’s US Trustee Program (which oversees bankruptcy cases) is objecting.