Fla. Appellate Court Reverses Order, Says Imerys Talc America Has ‘No Contacts with Florida’

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. –– A Florida appellate court has reversed an order denying Imerys Talc America’s motion to dismiss talc claims asserted against the company on jurisdiction grounds, concluding that the defendant had “no contacts with Florida.”

In the Dec. 19 opinion, the Florida Fourth District Court of Appeal explained that Imerys Talc’s sale of a component to a party in a second state is insufficient to subject the manufacturer to the jurisdiction of a third state where the completed product was sold.

In the underlying complaint, Judith M. Ricketts alleged that her use of Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder …