J&J Talc Claimants Say Company Is Hindering Case Investigation
(Bloomberg) -- A lawyer for claimants suing Johnson & Johnson over its baby powder wants a bankruptcy judge to force the pharma giant to produce requested information, saying its hindering efforts to investigate the case.
There has been what appears to be a concerted effort to obstruct, limit and delay discovery, in the case, Michael S. Winograd, co-counsel to two official claimants committees, wrote in a Dec. 28 letter. A Dec. 23 response from J&J saying it wouldnt fulfill the requests has necessitated a forthcoming motion to compel, wrote Winograd, a partner at Brown Rudnick.
J&J spun its talc liabilities into a separate unit, LTL Management LLC, and put the unit into bankruptcy Oct. 14, adding to the complexity of the case and sparking controversy because its a profitable company. Its facing 38,000 lawsuits charging that its talc products caused cancer and has pushed to create a trust to pay victims.
Winograd said the original claimant committee emailed information requests to J&J counsel on Dec. 16. After radio silence for four days, J&J said it wouldnt accept requests about future claims for LTL.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/jandj-talc-claimants-say-company-is-hindering-case-investigation/ar-AASfChX