PHARMACEUTICAL giant Johnson& Johnson (J&J) has committed to pay out US$5.5bn to thousands of plaintiffs that have alleged the company’s baby talcum powder products cause ovarian cancer. The company has recently settled similar cases where claimants have said its talc products contain asbestos and caused mesothelioma, which it also denies. Legal caseJ&J has seized its recent court wins, which includes a federal judge casting doubt on individual plaintiff's ability to prove that the talc products caused cancer. Claimant evidenceWhile J&J has been successful in its recent cases, its history with the cancer case is mixed, having previously lost an individual case in 2018 to 22 women which resulted in a US$4.7bn pay out. According to the lawyers representing around 2,500 claims, said that by the end of the litigation, J&J could be paying more than US$7bn in compensation.