Calif. Appellate Court Refuses to Disturb $12 Million Verdict in Talc Asbestos Case

SAN FRANCISCO — A California appellate court has refused to disturb a $12 million verdict in a talcum powder asbestos case, rejecting arguments by Johnson & Johnson and Colgate-Palmolive Co. that the trial court abused its discretion by admitting certain expert testimony.

In a Dec. 23 opinion, the California Court of Appeal, 1st District, also rejected defendants’ arguments that the trial court gave an adverse inference instruction regarding negligence, product liability, and concealment that was unjustified and prejudicial.

When Patricia Schmitz was a child, she applied J&J’s Baby Powder (JBP) to her siblings, and she herself used it from …